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“That’s interesting. Now the pistol is in Oregon. Wasn’t it in Texas to begin with?” James puckered his brows.
“I think that’s part of the allure of the pistol. No one is quite sure how it turns up when it does.” Carol didn’t seem fazed by the large amount of traveling the pistol had done.
“It would be neat to see that on a map,” Mabel mused.
“Let’s read the rest of this, then maybe I can work on doing that,” James offered. “If not tonight, then as I have time. I’d like to see it too.”
“Okay.” Mabel loved that idea.
“Next,” Carol commanded.
“Kristalee Donovan wed Captain Johnny Houston on August 31, 1899, in Hugo, Indian Territory. With a little help from the pink pistol, both of us learned what love really is and will treasure that love forever. How new and bright life has suddenly become. Can there be any adventure more wonderful than this?” Mabel looked up. “How romantic! That describes the way I feel about my life—how new and bright it has suddenly become!” Her shining eyes met James’s. The feeling of sisterhood strengthened in her soul. She could see why someone might be tempted to want to keep the pistol. It gave her the feeling of community.
“What do you have about this one?” James asked Carol. But she was already getting ready to read.
“Beautiful Krissy Donovan, a student of Annie Oakley, is asked to put on a sharpshooting benefit for an orphanage. The trouble is, it’s half a continent away. Her father has promised her services, and she finds herself virtually alone in perilous Indian Territory. Krissy’s father realizes he has made a terrible mistake, but a cavalry scout, familiar with the savage land, is the only one who can protect Krissy now.
“Rough-and-tumble cavalry captain Johnny Houston resents being asked to take on this last assignment of playing nursemaid to an eastern debutante before he musters out of the army. Johnny understands his duty as a soldier, so turning the order down is out of the question. With a killer stalking them, Johnny has to keep his mind on Krissy’s safety, but an attraction to his stubborn charge could end up compromising his heart.
“Memories of his own harsh childhood at the same orphanage haunt him. He has no choice but to make a stand for the children, or some of them won’t survive. Krissy dares to hope she can help in some way, even though it means giving up the lavish future that has been planned for her since birth.”
“Wow. She was a student of Annie Oakley. Can you imagine?” Mabel said with reverence. How she wished she could meet the great sharpshooter as well.
“You’ll be taking lessons from Ames Palmer. She has an Olympic gold medal in shooting, although I’m sure it’s not the same.” James grinned.
“I actually heard that she and Palmer got together because of their shooting competitions. Or maybe it was because of their broken legs. I can’t really remember what exactly I heard.” Carol scratched her head, then nodded at Mabel. “Give us the next one.”
“Goldie Colson wed Rhys Miller on August 31, 1900. I thought the pink pistol I found would save my life. It saved my heart instead. Okay, it could have saved my life too, but only because I have good aim.”
“Ha! Another one with a sense of humor.” James grinned.
Mabel loved that he seemed to be enjoying this, because she was loving it, but she would have quit if he were bored.
“This one was right at the turn of the century. Wow,” Mabel mused.
“Here’s what I have,” Carol began. “Goldie Colson has lost everything, including her parents, in a fire. So, she does what any other woman would do in her predicament. She becomes a mail-order bride. Unfortunately, before she can tie the knot, she loses her betrothed and his father to train robbers! Now she’s stuck in Nowhere, Washington, with nothing but the two men’s meager belongings, including a pistol her future father in-law found. Considering she shot one of the train robbers, it might come in handy if she ever ran into them again.
“Rhys Miller couldn’t complain about his life. He was best friends with some of the Weavers of the famous Weaver Farm and enjoyed working at the town’s only bank, even if it was a little dull. Thenshecame to town, and Rhys didn’t know if he was coming or going. Goldie Colson was scared and rightly so. Strangers were asking after her at the Weaver Farm, and after hearing about what happened to her with a bunch of train robbers, a few of them might want her dead. But Rhys isn’t sure which is worse, guarding Goldie from danger or guarding his heart from her.”
“Train robbers? I thought those only appeared in westerns, not in real life.” James studied the pistol. “It seems like this pistol has been through more than I thought.”
“Me too. I can’t believe the stories it could tell if it could talk.” Mabel lifted her eyes to James. “It could tell one about us.”
They smiled at each other.
“It sure could,” he murmured.
“Let’s read the rest of these. There might be even more excitement. We’ve only gone through four. There are ten owners before you.” Carol had each one numbered on her paper.
“Okay. Here’s my Pink Pistol Sister number five.” Mabel smiled, loving the name she’d dubbed her fellow pistol owners. How sweet it would be to meet these interesting women of the past!
“Kitty Horwath married Thad Easton this 25th of December, the year of our Lord 1910. A competition in Deadwood pitted us against each other, but a last-minute challenge and a test of faith won my heart (and the prize).”
“Deadwood? That’s in South Dakota!” James exclaimed.
“It took ten years for it to show up again,” Mabel mused.
“When Kitty’s father disappears, she and her family must find a way to pay for their house.
