Page 66 of Pistol Perfect
He smiled, a full, happy smile, but one that held no surprise. “I love you. I have forever.”
“I’m sorry I’m a slow learner.”
“I don’t think you’re slow. Everything happened in the perfect time. In God’s perfect time.”
She nodded because he was totally and completely correct.
“Are we going to look at the other paper?” he asked, prompting her to remember that they were sitting at the kitchen table, the pistol case open and Carol patiently waiting.
“Uh, yes. Of course,” she stuttered, carefully folding the first sheet of paper and putting it back in the case.
“I think the information I have goes with the other paper,” Carol said, taking a long, white envelope out of her purse and carefully pulling several sheets of handwritten papers out, unfolding them and laying them on the table in front of her.
Mabel tucked the first paper back and gently lifted the second one out, flattening it on the table as well. It contained assorted styles of handwriting. Some bold and thick, others thin and classy.
It seemed she would be adding her own handwriting to the sheet.
The idea made nerves coil in her stomach. She ignored them and read the first line.
“A gift from the great Annie Oakley, this pistol carries a legacy of love. If you possess this pistol and find love, please record your name and a bit of your story to encourage those who follow.”
“It did belong to Annie!” she couldn’t help but exclaim. She hadn’t been sure, even though it’s what she’d been told. Everything took on a newer and more meaningful cadence.
She cleared her throat and read the first entry.
“Tessa James married Jackson Spivey on March 3, 1894, in Caldwell, Texas—I was aiming for his heart but accidentally winged him in the arm. Thankfully, forgiveness and love cover a multitude of mishaps.”
“Sounds like someone needed a sense of humor,” James interjected.
“Let me read to you what my friend found out about this couple.” Carol ignored the smiles that James and Mabel shared as she began to read from her sheet.
“According to an article in the CaldwellRegisterfrom 1894, Tessa Spivey claimed to have received the pistol as a gift from Annie Oakley after taking lessons from the famous sharpshooter down in Austin. When asked why she'd wanted to learn to shoot, Mrs. Spivey admitted that it had been a ploy to gain the attention of her soon-to-be husband. Jackson Spivey had been living under the shadow of his disreputable father at the time and had demonstrated no interest in courtship. His father, Mr. Sam Spivey, was known to be a drunkard, gambler, and all-around wastrel and had been incarcerated at the state penitentiary in Huntsville. Left to make his own way in the world, Jackson put his skills with a rifle to good use, bringing in fresh game for the local hotel and working in Caldwell's lone gun shop. Miss James worked for a dressmaker of some renown, a Mrs. Elliott, and recalled Mr. Spivey's reticence toward her. 'I never thought to need an actual gun for husband hunting,' she said in the article, 'but Jackon left me little choice. I thought my taking up shooting would build common ground between us, but it nearly ended our relationship before it started.'"
Carol scanned her notes. "According the same article, Tessa later used the pistol to help foil a robbery."
“Oh! It sounds dangerous. Is that all there is?” Mabel asked, biting her lip.
“There's a mention of her giving the pistol to her friend Laura Marshall after she married Jackson. It seems that Laura didn't use the pistol herself but passed it along to her cousin, a Miss Rena Burke."
“"Ooo, that's the second one!” Mabel said, wanting to skip ahead and find out about all the women at once. She felt a deep sense of sisterhood with Tessa, despite the fact that they were separated by more than a century of time. It was an odd feeling but one she loved.
“You read what you have,” Carol instructed.
“Rena Burke wed Josh Gatlin on June 2, 1894, in Holiday, Oregon. When my trousers and target practice didn’t send him running, I knew true love had hit the perfect target for me.”
“Trousers?” James asked.
“That’s what they called pants back then.”
“I guess your trousers haven’t sent me running, either.”
“I haven’t started my target practice yet.”
He laughed.
Carol ignored them again and read from her paper. “Desperate for a fresh start, Rena Burke journeys from Texas to Oregon with only her father’s pistol and a plodding old mule for company. She takes a job working with explosives at a mine, spends her free time emulating her hero Annie Oakley, and secretly longs to be loved.
“Saddlemaker Josh Gatlin has one purpose in life, and that is his daughter. Gabi is his joy and the sunshine in his days. Then he meets a trouser-wearing woman living life on her own terms. Rena is nothing like his perception of what he wants in a wife and mother for his child, but she might just prove to be everything he needs.”