Come the Spring

  Jessica turned her attention to her son. She moved the glass toward him and told him to show Josey how he could manage a glass. She was bragging about his ability when he spilled the milk.

  Josey chuckled. “It’s usually my Tom who does that,” she commented. She mopped up the milk with a dishcloth and then held Jessica’s glass while Caleb took a drink.

  Caleb was finally ready to get down and explore the kitchen. Jessica followed him and held the drawers closed so he couldn’t empty them.

  “Sit back down and let him play,” Josey suggested.

  “He’ll destroy your kitchen,” she warned. “Caleb’s a very curious child.”

  Josey opened the doors under the counters. “My nieces and nephews like to play with my pots and pans. That’s the way,” she said when Caleb squatted down and reached for one of the wooden spoons.

  Jessica sat down next to Josey once again, and while they got to know one another, Caleb made a fine mess banging on the pots and pans. Within ten minutes he had warmed up to Josey enough to let her pick him up and kiss him.

  Cole and Tom came back into the kitchen then, and Cole gave Jessica a quick nod.

  “Josey, you and I are going to be keeping this little boy a spell,” Tom announced.

  Josey patted the baby and looked at Jessica. “No wonder you were asking those questions. I’ll be proud to watch him for you,” she added. “And Tom and I won’t let anything happen to him.”

  “Jessica’s a witness, and she’s got to go to Texas to testify,” Tom said. “Cole doesn’t think it’s a good idea to take the baby with them.”

  “When do you think you’ll be back?” Josey asked Cole.

  “I don’t know,” he answered. “Maybe two weeks … or longer.”

  “He won’t remember me.”

  Everyone turned to Jessica.

  “Of course he’ll remember you,” Josey said. “We won’t let him forget.”

  Tom suggested Jessica and Cole spend the night with them so that the adjustment for Caleb would be easier on him. Jessica let Josey bathe Caleb but hovered over her like a mother hen. Josey did know her way around babies. She filled a basin in the sink and let Caleb splash water everywhere while she lathered him up.

  “You’re very good with him,” Jessica told her.

  She followed Josey up the stairs to the guest room. Caleb, wrapped in a thick towel, was peeking at his mother over Josey’s shoulder.

  “He always sleeps with a rag doll. It’s in his valise,” Jessica said. “Oh, and he hates carrots. He’ll spit them out if you try to force them on him.”

  “I wouldn’t do that,” Josey said. “I hate carrots too. I know you’re gonna worry, no matter what assurances I give you, but I promise you I’m gonna love this boy like he was my own. Why don’t you go on downstairs for a bit and let Caleb get used to me. I’ll call out if I need help.”

  “Yes, that’s a good idea,” Jessica said. It was also a test. Putting Caleb to bed required stamina and patience. Every once in a while, if he was overly tired, Caleb would throw a tantrum. The baby was all wound up now, and that was a sure indication that trouble was coming. Jessica left the valise on the bed and closed the door behind her.

  When she came downstairs, she found Cole in the living room standing by the window, looking out. She glared at him before turning her back on him.

  “What was that all about?”

  She began to pace. “This is all your fault,” she whispered. “Can’t you see that this is breaking my heart?”

  He started toward her, but she put her hand out to keep him at bay. “I can’t leave him. I’m sorry, but that’s the way it is. He’ll be lost without me, and he’ll be afraid and he’ll be miserable and …”

  As if to mock her, Caleb’s peal of laughter echoed down the stairs. Cole shook his head. “He sure doesn’t sound miserable.”

  “I’m not going to go through with this. My mind’s made up,” she whispered.

  She turned to go back up the stairs, but Cole grabbed hold of her hand and pulled her up against him.

  “Tom?” he called out. “Jessica and I are going for a walk.”

  The way he was squeezing her hand told her not to argue. She let him drag her out the back door and into the yard. He didn’t stop pulling her along until he reached a cluster of trees that shielded them from the street and gave them privacy.

  “Now you listen to me—” he began.

  She cut him off. “Don’t you dare take that tone of voice with me. I will not leave my baby with strangers. I’m sorry, Cole, but that’s the way it’s going to be.”

  She tried to jerk her hand away, but he tightened his hold and pulled her close until she was pressed against his chest. His face was inches away from hers. He was going to give her a hard lecture because she was being so stubborn, but then he saw her tears and relented. Now wasn’t the time to lecture.

  “I know how hard this is…”

  “No, you don’t know. You aren’t a mother.”

  “No, I’m not,” he agreed. “You’re going to have to be sensible. I know Tom Norton, and I’m telling you he’s trustworthy. When Luke MacFarland and his wife were killed, Tom and Josey wanted to raise their children.”

  “Why didn’t they?”

  “Luke’s relatives wouldn’t let them. They farmed the children out among them.”

  “They separated brothers?” she whispered.

  “Yes, but Tom tried to keep them all together. I’m telling you he’s a good man. So is his wife. Josey took care of me when I got sick. I was a stranger to her, but she still nursed me back to health. The Nortons aren’t going to let anything bad happen to your baby. They’ll love him, Jessie, and we can’t take Caleb with us. You know that, don’t you?”

  “I’m not going to go to Texas.”

  “Must you be so stubborn about this? It’s out of your hands. You have to go, and Caleb has to stay.”

  “I hate this,” she cried out.

  He wrapped his arms around her and held her tight. “I know you do.”

  “I’m beginning to hate you too, Cole Clayborne. This is all your fault.”

  “All right. It’s all my fault,” he whispered. His chin dropped down on top of her head, and he continued to hold her and stroke her back for several minutes until she had calmed down. He couldn’t help but notice how good she felt in his arms.

  She couldn’t stop thinking about the danger Caleb had been in when that monster had killed her guard. Her son could have been killed too.

  The Nortons would keep him safe. In her heart she knew that to be true. She suddenly pulled away from Cole. “None of this is your fault. You’re only doing your job. You’re right too. Caleb should stay out of harm’s way.”

  She straightened her shoulders, turned around, and walked back inside.

  Josey was waiting at the kitchen table. She wanted to tell Jessica that Caleb had gone right to sleep, but when she saw the heartache on the poor mother’s face, she got up and went to her. “I’m going to take good care of your boy. I promise you, Jessica. Tom and I will treat him like he was our own son.”

  “I want to thank you for agreeing to watch him, and I know I don’t have the right to ask…”

  “You can ask anything you want to ask. If I can do it, I will.”

  “If I don’t come back…”

  “Don’t talk like that,” Josey interrupted.

  “You’re coming back,” Cole said from behind. Jessica ignored both protests. “If I don’t come back, Josey, will you raise my son?”

  Josey looked over Jessica’s head at Cole. He gave a quick nod. “Yes, Tom and I will raise him. You’ve got my word.”

  “Thank you,” Jessica said, her voice flat. “I would also like you to change his name legally so that he won’t feel like an outsider. I want him to belong to a family.”

  “Jessica, for God’s sake, stop talking like that. Nothing’s going to happen to you.”

  “I have to make arrangements just in case. I o
we it to Caleb.”

  Josey understood. “We’ll make it legal,” she promised. “I give you my word.”

  Jessica grabbed hold of her hand. “One last promise, Josey, and I’ll be able to go. Please, don’t ever leave him.”

  Twenty-Six

  Daniel was torn between responsibilities. His primary obligation was to escort Grace to Texas, and he was doing exactly that, but he also wanted to head over to the small town of Clarkston, where the latest robbery had occurred, to look for evidence that might help him in his investigation.

  He couldn’t send Cooper to the bank in his place, as he was with Rebecca, making certain she got to Texas alive and unharmed. The two of them had left for the depot an hour ago, but not before Cooper had dispatched his two young and inexperienced deputies to Clarkston to help the sheriff there. Rebecca had insisted on sending a telegram to the hotel in Salt Lake City to cancel the reservation she’d made the day before and to alert her friends that her plans had been changed, and as soon as she came out of the telegraph office, she was put in a coach with Cooper and sent on her way.

  Cooper had suggested that he and Rebecca wait until Grace could travel so that he could take both women with him and Daniel could go to Clarkston, but Daniel refused. Each of the women believed herself to be the only one claiming to have witnessed the robbery, and he was determined to keep all three of them separated on the trip to Red Arrow because he didn’t want them making any more joint plans. Although he personally believed that Rebecca was the real witness—she had given descriptions and details to prove she had been there—he would let the judge in Blackwater decide for himself which one of the three was telling the truth.

  He hadn’t seen Cole before he left town with Jessica and Caleb. They had taken off an hour or so after the gunman had tried to kill her. Daniel still didn’t know the name of the dead man, but he was certain he was one of the Blackwater gang. Past reports told him that there were seven men in the gang. One was in jail in Blackwater, another was dead now, thanks to Cole’s expertise, and five were still out there somewhere … waiting for an opportunity, Daniel believed, to silence all three women.

  There was also another reason he didn’t want Cooper to take Grace with him, but one Daniel would never admit. While he trusted Cooper to do his job, he didn’t want to let Grace out of his sight. In his mind, no one could protect her as diligently as he could. There was also the fact that he was drawn to her, and it was his hope that by the time they reached the stopping point in Red Arrow, he would have gotten over his bizarre and unexplainable infatuation.

  Daniel stayed in Rockford Falls that night and slept in a chair outside of Grace’s door. He went downstairs early the next morning, but didn’t plan to leave the town until late that afternoon when the coach arrived.

  Grace had other ideas. Daniel had just returned from the bathhouse, where he’d washed and changed into clean clothes, and was standing on the veranda talking to Dr. Lawrence when Grace came down the stairs. Dressed in a pale pink skirt and matching blouse, she carried her white gloves and hat in her hands, and went directly to the manager’s desk to inform him that she was leaving. Sloan trailed behind her, carrying her valise.

  Daniel didn’t like the crowd in the lobby. Folks were checking out of the hotel, and it was chaotic. He quickly went to Grace’s side and ordered her back upstairs.

  “You can rest until this afternoon when the coach arrives.”

  “I don’t wish to rest any longer. I feel fine,” she insisted. “Have you changed your mind about taking me to Texas?”

  “No.”

  “I didn’t think so, but I was compelled to ask. We need to talk, Daniel.”

  “Upstairs.”

  “No, not upstairs. Now, right this minute, then I expect you’ll take me off to jail.”

  “I’m taking you to Texas,” he whispered as he half dragged her into a corner.

  “Sheriff Sloan just told me they’re holding a man in Blackwater and they think he’s one of the gang. Is that true?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then why didn’t you tell me?” she demanded. “I never would have…”

  “You never would have what?”

  “I lied to you,” she cried out. “I’m not your witness. I only said that I was to protect Rebecca and Jessica. It was wrong and I’m sorry. Please don’t be angry with me. Will I have to stay in jail long?”

  “You aren’t going to jail,” he muttered.

  “But I lied to an officer of the law.”

  “The three of you have done nothing but lie,” he said. “I honestly don’t know who to believe.”

  “I’m telling you the truth now. I wasn’t there.”

  “At this point I don’t care if you were there or not. The judge has ordered all three of you to Blackwater, and that’s where we’re going as soon as the coach arrives.”

  “Why are the others going?”

  “I just explained that Judge Rafferty wants all of you there.”

  “Will he put me in jail for lying?”

  The thought of her behind bars was so outrageous, he lost some of his anger.

  “You’ve got bigger things to worry about than jail. Come on. You’re going back upstairs to wait in your room until the coach gets here.”

  She shook her head. “If I must go…”

  “You must.”

  “I don’t want to wait for a coach. Can’t we go by horseback? The sheriff told me it would be quicker because we could take some cut throughs.”

  He smiled. “Shortcuts,” he corrected.

  A stout, elderly woman was pushing her way through the crowd toward Grace. Daniel noticed her out of the corner of his eye and moved to put himself in front of Grace.

  “I beg your pardon,” the woman said. “Please get out of my way. I wish to speak to Lady Winthrop.”

  Grace gave Daniel a little nudge and stepped forward. “Good morning,” she said.

  The woman made an attempt at a curtsy. “It’s an honor to meet you,” she said. “My name is Winifred Larson,” she added with a blush. “And I couldn’t help but notice your lovely hat. Could you tell me where you purchased it? I would like to get one just like it. Would you mind if I looked at it more closely?”

  Grace smiled and handed the hat to Winifred. The straw brim was covered in lace and flowers, and there were two purple plumes feathering up and out on one side.

  “It’s exquisite,” Winifred declared. “I must have one just like it. I have a purple dress, you see, and it would be lovely with it.”

  A tall, thin man with a receding hairline came over to join them. She quickly introduced him. “This is my husband, Lionel,” she said. In a loud whisper she told her husband to bow to Lady Winthrop.

  “That isn’t necessary,” Grace said.

  “Do you mind telling me where you purchased this divine creation?” Winifred asked again.

  Grace explained. “I purchased the basic straw hat, but I decorated it.”

  “Then there’s not another one in all the world like it?”

  “I know where this is headed,” her husband interjected with a chuckle.

  Grace didn’t understand. “Excuse me?”

  “When Winifred gets a notion she wants something…”

  “May I buy it from you?” Winifred blurted out. “To own a Lady Winthrop creation would be so thrilling for me. I simply must have it. How much will you take for it? Will five dollars do?”

  Grace was incredulous. She glanced at Daniel to see how he was reacting and smiled because he looked genuinely puzzled.

  “Actually, Mrs. Larson, I hadn’t considered selling…”

  “If it’s an original, Mother,” Lionel whispered loudly, “you’ve got to offer more.”

  “Yes, yes, you’re right. Ten dollars then. Will that do?”

  Daniel decided it was time for him to interfere. Grace’s face was turning pink, and he figured she was embarrassed.

  “I don’t think the lady wants—”

  ??
?Sold,” Grace blurted out. “For ten dollars.” Lionel quickly paid her. She tucked the money into her pocket, told Winifred she hoped she enjoyed the hat, and then bid them good-bye.

  “Shouldn’t we go to the stables now?” she asked Daniel.

  From the glint in her eyes, Daniel knew she was determined to get her way. “You’re in no condition to ride a horse. You should sit inside a coach and try to rest.”

  “I don’t need to rest.”

  He still felt compelled to argue with her for several more minutes before giving in. In the back of his mind, he kept thinking that if they took the shortcuts and didn’t follow the winding roads, they could possibly reach the train station in time to board the late afternoon train. If they didn’t make it in time, the next train wouldn’t come through until the following morning.

  He stood there, hesitating, as he studied her. Her hair was down around the sides of her face, and he gently lifted a silky strand away to look at the bruise near her temple. It didn’t look as bad as it had last night.

  His fingers trailed down the side of her face. “Are you sure, Grace?”

  She gently removed his hand. “I’m sure.”

  He was staring intently at her, and she thought he might be looking for a sign of weakness from her. She straightened her shoulders, smiled, and suggested once again that they get going.

  “Is there time for me to stop by the wagon? I must get another hat,” she explained. “A lady should never appear in public without her head covered. It just isn’t done.”

  “Then why did you sell the one you had?”

  “Daniel, it was ten whole dollars.”

  He grinned. “It took you by surprise, didn’t it?”

  “Not really,” she admitted. “It’s the third hat I’ve sold since I arrived, and I didn’t even try,” she added. “The poor ladies here don’t have the shops we have in London. They must order through the catalog, but quite often what they think they’re buying and what they get are two different things. It can be very disappointing.”

  “I’m sure it can be,” he said dryly.

  She laughed. “Hats are important to ladies, but not to men. Isn’t that right?”