Second Star to the Right

SECOND STAR TO THE RIGHT

by Mctrip7

Rating: PG-13
Genre: Suspense, Angst, Romance
For: Connor, as requested
Archive: Trip
Disclaimer: The characters belong to Paramount, but the story is mine
Summary: Anticipation, Realization

Chapter 1

Springtime in New England is beyond comparison. The snow and ice of the long winter have melted away. Everything seems to have turned green at the same time. The trees are full of small leaves and the flowers are bursting into bloom. Everything speaks of a new beginning!

The campus of Yale College was no different. The grounds were ablaze with color. Graduation ceremonies had just taken place for many of the students, and everyone was in a festive mood. Families were visiting and there was packing to do and ‘good-byes’ to say to those who would be forever in your memories.

The Law School had been established in 1843 but the institution was not to become a University until 1887. At this moment it was Yale College of Law. The year was 1872.

The bright morning sun broke through the slit in the heavy dark curtains. Clay opened one eye and snapped it shut! Slowly his other senses kicked in. This time he opened both eyes and squinted immediately.

“Who turned the lights on?” his raspy voice roared. “Turn the dam things off.” Gradually, reality began setting in.

To himself he said “It can’t be morning already. What time is it? Boy, that was some party! My mouth tastes like I’ve been drinking sewer water; but today, today is the beginning of everything I’ve worked for! Clayton B. Thornton, LLB, Class of 1872, has a nice ring to it.”

“Oh God, what time is it? I’m supposed to meet Mother and Father for lunch at the Hotel. I think I invited Theresa, too. I wanted her to meet my folks before we left. She’s from Philadelphia and that’s where I plan to hang out my first Shingle.”

Theresa had been his first real love. He knew who she was the last of his sophomore year, but he didn’t meet her until sometime the following Fall. He and several of his friends had been invited to the Harvest Ball sponsored by the Counselors for the sorority chapters on Campus. It was a huge affair, flowing decorations, nosegays for the ladies and boutonnieres for the gentlemen. The ladies had a dance program and the young men were expected to fill it up without delay. In this setting it was proper for the young man to introduce himself to the young lady.

Clay worked at getting up the courage to approach Theresa. He almost waited too long. He put his name in the last open line on her program. After the assigned dances were completed, Clay made sure he was near her and he swept her off to finish the evening with him. She didn’t seem to object and they spent the rest of the time laughing and dancing. Clay was smitten. Theresa seemed overjoyed, too.

At Christmas, Theresa invited Clay to spend the Holidays with her family. Clay accepted and got a real taste of what society had to offer. Her father was President of the Bank in Philadelphia and a much respected member of the local establishment. There were parties to attend every evening and his days were filled with golf, tennis and even a polo match. Since Clay was the star player on Yale’s Polo Team, he had a chance to shine. Theresa was very pleased and told him how proud she was of him.

After the Holidays, they seemed to be regarded as a couple and were invited to many things together. Clay continued to do well in his studies and Theresa continued her quest to become a doctor; though such a thing was unheard of at that time!

Now it was time to say goodbye for a little while. Clay planned to return to Yale in the Fall and prepare to earn his doctorate. He planned to spend some time in Philadelphia, renewing friendships prior to opening his Law Office.

Clay consulted his timepiece. “Hope there’s still a carriage out front by the Park; otherwise I will really be late,” Clay continued. Forty-five minutes later Clay entered the dinning room of the hotel. He spied his parents and moved toward them. Theresa had already joined them. His mother looked none too happy.

“Uh, Oh! Theresa must have already mentioned my plans. This is not the way I expected to tell them,” Clay thought to himself.

“Hello Mother, Dad, Theresa,” he said, nodding to each one in turn. “I’m sorry I’m late. No hot water,” he offered humbly. “I see you’ve already met Theresa.

“What’s this I hear about you going to Philadelphia?” his mother’s cool voice interjected.
“Your father is expecting you to join him in his firm in Indianapolis.”

“Mother, don’t worry. We’re just tossing some ideas around. Nothing has been decided as yet. Let’s not get into it right now. I’m still relishing my sheepskin. I’ve only had it for a day!

“Son,” his father spoke up. “I have a little surprise for you. Your Uncle John has invited you to spend a few months with him on his ranch in Texas. Do you good to get away from all the studying and paper work you’ve been doing lately.”

Clay felt like his jaw must have dropped a few inches until he realized his father was offering him a way out of the coming stalemate.

“My brother is always asking why you never come West for a visit.” Mr. Thornton continued.

“That’s a great idea, Father. He’ll be surprised to see that I’ve finally learned to ride a horse.”

Theresa was noticeably disappointed, but his mother could hardly keep the smile from her lips.

“We’ll discuss the details later,” his father said. “For now let’s give the waiter our order. I’m famished.”

So began the Yale Cowboy’s adventure . . .

Clay left Indianapolis on the first of June, 1872. He was to arrive in St. Louis by the end of the week. A steamboat ride down the Mississippi River, taking a tributary to Jefferson in East Texas, then a Stage to Fort Worth would take about ten days. Uncle John would meet him there and they would pick up the horses and ride northwest to Saint Jo. John Thornton’s ranch was near Henrietta – Comanche country! The Indians continued to stage raiding parties every so often. The Army Troops couldn’t seem to locate their villages as the marauders were constantly on the move.

Clay was beginning to notice how out of place his clothes were. When they reached Saint Jo, he asked if he could go by the General Store and buy some pants and a shirt. John was willing. He said what Clay was wearing wouldn’t last a week!

As Clay entered the store, he noticed several men looking at him and then covering their faces. Maybe they had never seen a yellow shirt and green riding pants before. It was almost a uniform for the polo team back East. When he asked the proprietor if he could see some shirts and pants, the man said

“Black or gray?” in a totally flat voice.

Clay said “Black pants would be okay. What color shirts do you have?”

Again the man said “Black or gray?”

“I think I would like that blue plaid one over there. Any objection?”

“No. You must be goin’ courtin’,” the man said with a wink.

Clay felt his face warm up as he said “How much?” He was thinking maybe the West wasn’t the place for him; but he was here and he was going to make the best of it!

They reined in at the OKX Ranch about noon the next day, after sleeping under the stars the previous night.

Clay had commented to his uncle that he didn’t know there were that many stars in the sky. “You almost believe you could reach up and touch them.”

“Sometimes they make the night almost as bright as day. That astronomer that writes for the paper says that some day we might go to them. Ha, ha! Does he think that suddenly we might be able to fly?

Clay was thinking about what his uncle had said. “Wonder if there’s anybody up there, if they would look like we do.”

“Guess we’ll never know. You better get some sleep. Tomorrow will be a long day.
You set a horse pretty well. Where’d you learn that?”

“I was on the polo team.” Clay answered.

“Oh” was all his uncle said.

The noon chow bell was clanging as they rode up to the ranch house. Clay could see some crusty looking men heading toward a shed behind the house.

“Let’s go on inside.” his uncle said as he dismounted. “Maria will serve us there. Maria’s my housekeeper, cook, listener, etc. since your Aunt Margaret died. She’s been with us for years. Helped raise the boys and took care of Margaret when she got down.” The clank of their boots on the porch announced their arrival.

Anything you need help with, Maria’s the one,” John said as he turned to look out the window. Every time he mentioned Margaret’s name, he still got a lump in his throat. She’d been gone almost five years now, but sometimes it seemed like just yesterday that she was telling him how everything was going to work out fine, to be patient. Not his best virtue!

Maria came hustling in as they pulled up a chair in the dinning room.

“Lordy, John, I thought you’d never get here. This boy must be starving. ‘looks pale and thin to me. We’ll take care of that real soon!”

Clay couldn’t help but laugh. He knew he’d like Maria right away.

“Maria, this is my nephew, Clayton Thornton. He’s going to be with us for a while. Would you ask Sam to come in when he’s finished?” To Clay he said “Sam’s my Foreman. He’s in charge of the men and he sees that everything gets done around here. He knows how I run things. He’s my right-hand man. You’ll be reporting to him when you get started.”

“After you get the hang of our operation, I want you to learn about the responsibility that goes with it. Beau may need your help someday. Paul’s already made his choice. He’s in Kansas at the Theological Seminary – gonna be a minister. Hard for me to realize the boys are grown men now.”

Clay vaguely remembered his cousins. The last time they came to Indianapolis was more than ten years ago.

“I look forward to seeing them again. We used to play Sheriff and bad guys when we were kids.”

The next morning Clay was introduced to his horse. Some of the ranch hands followed he and Sam over to the corral.

“This here is Chiric.” Sam said. “He can be a devil when he wants to be; but as long as you let him know who’s boss, he’s a mighty fine horse. He’s smart, too. That’s where he got his name. One of the local tribes is called the Chiricahua Apache and you don’t want to mess with them”

While Clay was looking forward to riding horseback, he was a little apprehensive on seeing this spirited steed.

Sam’s right-hand man joined the group. “Sam, John would like to see you for a minute. He’s got that big book open in his office,” smiled Larry.

Everybody chuckled. It was a standing joke that when John had the Ledger open and called for Sam, it meant that Sam was in hot water! Usually it only meant that John wanted to be sure his figures matched Sam’s since Sam handled all the purchasing for the ranch.

John and Sam had come West together after John pushed on from Indianapolis, where John’s brother, Robert, had decided to settle his family. John occasionally referred to Sam as his half-brother. He had said he would trust Sam with his life any day.

Sam shared these feelings and would have gladly given his life to protect John and his family. Sam never married, said he really didn’t have time to keep up with a wife; besides John’s boys were like his own, anyway. He had taught them the finer skills of riding and tracking that he learned from the Indians. Sam often attended the “Pow-Wows” when the local tribes came together, sometimes excluding the Comanche who had their own agenda. John felt that this was probably why they never had any trouble with the Indians. Sam always knew first-hand what the problem was if the Indians were restless. The local Sheriff always consulted him when he heard rumors.

“Alright, boys, you give him a hand if he needs it, Sam said nodding toward Clay. “I’ll be back soon, I hope.” Everyone chuckled again.

Lefty, one of the hands, threw a rope over Chiric’s head and started to rein him in. The horse reared up on his hind legs and pawed the air. He didn’t want any part of that rope! Lefty scrambled out of his way and tossed the rope to Clay who wasn’t exactly sure what he was supposed to do with it!

Some of the other hands yelled “Keep him occupied while we get a saddle on him.”

All Clay knew to do was to talk calmly and steadily to the horse while holding the rope taught. This was getting more difficult by the minute. Chiric’s ears were flat against his head and his eyes wide open with a rather wild look in them, Clay noted. He couldn’t remember if horses ever charged anyone or if that was only bulls.

The corral fence had emptied when the horse reared up. Someone grabbed another rope and threw it over Chiric’s head and pulled in the opposite direction from Clay. The men with the saddle began talking to the horse as they cinched it under his belly. Clay was able to get a little closer when the steed put his front feet down and didn’t try to kick anyone else. He still looked frightened to Clay; so he continued to talk to him in soothing tones. Chiric finally allowed Clay to get close enough to him to stroke his flank.

A big cheer went up! “You’re OK, Clay,” someone called out.

Clay felt Chiric tense up. “It’s OK, boy. It’s OK. They’re just being loud,” he said as he continued to scratch behind the horse’s ears. Clay was sure Cleric understood him as the horse nodded his head!

“I don’t believe this,” Clay said to himself. “You really did understand what I said.” Clay felt foolish but to Chiric he said “Would you mind if I mounted you?”

The horse stood perfectly still as Clay put his foot in the stirrup and swung the other leg over the horse’s back. Clay continued talking to him. Holding the reins, he asked that the men let go of their ropes as he slipped them off Chiric’s head. Everyone held his breath.

“You feel up to a little ride?” Clay asked as he guided the reins toward the gate. The horse took a few steps. Larry opened the gate slowly and “V E R O O O O M! Chiric took off like a windcat with Clay hanging on for dear life!

Continued in Chapters 2 and 3

Back to Fan Fiction Main Menu

Have a comment to make about this story? Do so in the Trip Fan Fiction forum at the HoTBBS!

One person has made comments

Yes, this is a Trip story! Mctrip7 has a story to tell, so sit back and enjoy.

To get you used to the new system, I'm closing comments here. Please join the conversation over in the fan fiction section of the HoTBBS!

http://houseoftucker.com/bboard/posting.php?mode=editpost&p=115751

--myst123