Glory Read Online Free Page A

expect to see a covered wagon with five girls and a man in it either, but I recognized a wagon when I saw one.”
    Lily giggled, and Mary smothered a cough. The tense moment passed, and Jackson poured himself a second cup of coffee.
    “How come you don’t have a last name?” Lily asked.
    “I’ve been trying to get one. Poppy tried to find me a husband, but that didn’t work out.”
    Jackson choked on a swallow of coffee that went down the wrong way. Glory leaned over and whacked him on the back until the spasm passed.
    “Married?” he choked.
    Glory nodded. “Been trying to get married, but men are fickle. They keep bringing me back.”
    Patience’s eyes widened with surprise, and the other girls snickered.
    Jackson pinned them with a stern look. “Ladies.”
    Glory shrugged. “Poppy found three likely candidates before he died, but each one brought me back home before the day was out. Almost made it to supper with one, but Ralph didn’t like it when I told him he didn’t know beans about turnips. So I’ve got just Glory for a name.”
    She pulled off the battered hat and thrust her hands into the released mass of curly, cinnamon-colored hair. Jackson frowned. If she’d taken off her hat earlier, he’d have realized that she was a female. She was a comely young woman, perhaps a bit older than Ruth, with slightly tilted gray green eyesin an oval face. Despite the dirt, Jackson noted a few freckles sprinkled across a finely carved nose above a neatly defined mouth. If only she didn’t smell so bad. Poppy clearly hadn’t emphasized regular baths and clean clothing.
    “Well, far as I know, there’s no law about not having a last name.” Jackson finished the coffee and pitched the grounds into the fire. “Best we get supper over with early. We leave at first light.”
    Weary from the day’s journey, the group ate supper and washed dishes. Each girl took a bedroll from the back of the wagon but seemed hesitant on where to spread her blanket. One waited for the other to make a decision. Jackson spread his bedroll at the front of the wagon, giving the girls privacy.
    Standing upwind, Ruth glanced at Glory. “You get first choice on where to sleep.”
    Glory’s eyes surveyed the possibilities, and she shrugged. “Don’t rightly matter.”
    Lily licked one finger and held it up in a clear effort to determine the direction of the slight breeze. Then the girls spread their blankets upwind from Glory.

    Glory wondered if she’d done something wrong. She’d been real polite, answered all their questions best she
    could, and she thought they were getting along right well for strangers. But clearly nobody wanted to sleep near her.
    Jackson issued a gentle reminder from the front of the wagon. “Ladies, it’s getting late.”
    Tucked in her bedroll, Ruth opened a leather-bound book and smiled at Glory. “We were reading in Psalms last night. Psalm 23.”
    Glory listened to Ruth’s melodic voice as she read words that Glory had never heard before, beautiful words. She didn’t understand what they meant, but they kept her attention. She’d seen a book like that once. Poppy had brought it home and said a lot of people put store in the words, but since neither she nor Poppy could read, they didn’t know what it said. She glanced at Jackson, who lay listening to Ruth read. Did he know what the strange words meant? Did he count them useful? He must, she decided, because he didn’t make Ruth stop.
    When Ruth finished reading and closed the book, the girls bowed their heads and Patience began to speak. “Lord, we thank you for a safe journey today and for food tonight. We thank you again for Jackson, who is taking us to a new life in Colorado. And we pray for a restful night of sleep and a good day tomorrow. Amen.”
    The other girls echoed, “Amen.”
    Ruth started to put the book back into its waterproof pouch.
    “What is that?” Glory asked.
    Ruth turned. “This?”
    Glory nodded. “It has pretty