The next morning, Juliet woke up before Carl did. She kept quiet as she got dressed. The cabin was much warmer than it’d been yesterday morning, which made her glad she had insisted he sleep in here instead of the barn loft. Even if he slept on the floor, at least he was better off than he’d been out there.
Once she was finished putting on one of her dresses, she pinned her hair back into a bun. Today they would go to Caroline and Eric’s to have lunch. She glanced outside to see if they’d gotten more snow. No. They hadn’t. That should make the trip into town easy enough.
She didn’t know whether to be relieved or disappointed. It might be fun to talk to Caroline and Allie again. The two were nice women, and she had enjoyed their company when they’d come out to visit. It might even be nice for Carl to be able to talk to someone other than her. Even if they got along much better than she thought they ever would when she came up here to marry him, there were things men could talk to other men about that they couldn’t discuss with women. Her time with her brothers had taught her that.
But every time she was around other people, she risked the chance she’d expose something that might make them suspicious about her. With Carl, she was safe. He already knew she was hiding something. More than that, he had accepted it. Never once had he tried to wiggle more information from her. The others, however, might not give her such leniency.
Well, she had agreed to go to the lunch, so she was stuck with it. As long as she was careful in what she said, everything should be fine.
She turned from the window and started on breakfast. This time of day was one of her favorites. Things were still quiet, and that allowed her plenty of time to think over everything. At the moment, she was debating what she might ask Caroline and Allie to keep the focus on them instead of her.
She’d come up with a couple of topics by the time Carl woke up. With a glance at him, she smiled. “Good morning.”
Carl rubbed his eyes. “What time is it?”
“Hold on.” She placed the eggs onto their plates then grabbed the pocket watch from her trunk. “It’s five after eight.”
He jerked into a sitting position. “I shouldn’t have slept in so late.”
“You were tired. You didn’t get much sleep the night before since you were freezing in the barn.”
He retrieved his boots and slipped them on. “I wasn’t freezing.”
“You might as well have been by the way you were shivering. It took a half hour to warm you up enough so that you could come in here.”
“It didn’t take that long.”
“If not, then it was close to it.” She caught the exasperated expression on his face, so she continued, “I’m not trying to argue with you, Carl. I just want to make sure you stay in good health, that’s all. People can get sick if they don’t rest up enough after being cold for as long as you were.”
Her answer seemed to calm him down, for his expression relaxed. “I’m not used to people caring if I’m well or not.” He paused then added, “Thank you.” He rose to his feet and crossed the room to get his coat.
“Aren’t you going to eat?”
“I have to feed the horses. I should have done it an hour ago. They’re going to think I forgot about them.”
“I just made the eggs. They’ll be cold if you don’t eat them right now.”
“I don’t mind eating cold eggs. I’ll get to them when I return.”
She was ready to protest but decided against it. When her brothers wanted to do something, there was no talking them out of it, and the more she’d tried, the more she’d irritated them. If he wanted to eat cold eggs, she’d let him. It was better than getting into a fight.
She watched him as he went to the barn then put his plate at his place on the table. She sat across from it and ate her meal in silence.
***
“You’re awfully quiet,” Eric said as he held out a cup of coffee to Carl.
From where Carl was sitting on the porch, he could hear Juliet, Caroline, and Allie laughing from the kitchen. Travis was still in the house with them. The children were playing a game in the yard. So that left Carl alone with Eric for the moment.
Carl accepted the cup but didn’t drink from it. He’d already had enough to drink during the meal. “I don’t have a lot to say,” he finally replied when he realized Eric was staring at him.
When Carl had accepted Caroline’s invitation, it’d seemed like a simple thing. Now that they were here, he was beginning to think he should have said no. He didn’t belong here with these people. He belonged somewhere else. Anywhere else. He didn’t care where it was as long as it would take him away from this town and all the people in it.
But this wasn’t about him. It was about Juliet. She should have something she could look forward to, and since she wasn’t running off to spend time with other men, the least he could do was let her talk to Caroline and Allie.
He was hoping Eric would go back into the cabin and leave him alone for a few more minutes, but such wasn’t his luck.
Eric sat next to him, his own cup in hand. “Juliet seems nice.”
Carl nodded. “Yeah, she is.” She was a lot better than Lydia, that was for sure.
“Juliet’s from Texas, right?”
Carl hesitated to answer. While he had burned the Wanted poster, there was the possibility that Eric had gotten other correspondence warning him about her.
“I think Hank said your mail-order bride came from Texas,” Eric continued.
He grimaced. “I wish Hank would mind his own business.”
“It’s a small town.” Eric chuckled. “If anyone has a secret, it won’t be a secret for long.” Eric took a sip of his coffee.
Carl watched Eric. Was Eric giving him a message? Was he letting him know that he knew Juliet was an outlaw? No. That was silly. If Eric knew, then he would do something about it. He wouldn’t wait for Carl to tell him. That wasn’t his way of dealing with things.
Carl shifted in his chair. “I still think people would be better off minding their own business.”
“Sometimes it’s good that they don’t,” Eric replied. “If Ida hadn’t talked about the dress Jerry had in his wagon, then I never would have figured out he was the one who was threatening you. Then I might not have gotten to you in time.”
“I’m not saying I’m not grateful for what you did for me,” Carl began, “but was it really worth it? There doesn’t seem to be a reason that I should even be alive. I know Jerry was wrong to kill Lydia, but even after everything he did to me, I have a hard time hating him.” After a moment, he added, “Jerry had a wife who loved him and two children.” He glanced over at the two girls as they played with Caleb. “They might appear to be happy, but I bet they cry when no one’s looking.”
“I’m sure they do. But Carl, you have a right to be alive, and Jerry was wrong in what he did.”
“I didn’t say he wasn’t wrong. I just wish things had ended differently. Wouldn’t you have let him go free given the fact that Lydia seduced him and then threatened to ruin his reputation? Don’t the circumstances outweigh the crime?”
“I’d like to say yes, but the truth is, they don’t. My job is to enforce the law, not to make it. If someone kills another person, they have to be punished. Jerry knew what he was doing. He didn’t murder Lydia by accident. He planned it.”
“Because Lydia pushed him to do it.” When Eric shook his head, Carl continued, “You didn’t know Lydia like I did. She was awful. She didn’t care who she hurt. She used to laugh at the misery she caused. Jerry wasn’t the only person she ruined.”
“I understand Lydia wasn’t a saint, but that doesn’t change the fact that Jerry made his own choices. Jerry was responsible for what he did. One way or another, justice had to be served.”
“That seems cruel when you take into account how much he had to live for.” He gestured to the girls.
“I may not enjoy all aspects of my job,” Eric said, his voice sympathetic, “but I am bound by the law to uphold it. If I don’t, then we’ll have lawlessness back in this town, and if that happens, this won’t be a safe place for the people who live here.”
Getting rid of that Wanted poster was the best thing Carl had ever done. He had a gut feeling there was a good reason Juliet committed the crime she had. No matter how terrible it was, it wasn’t worth having her spend the rest of her life in prison or get hanged for it.
If only they could get enough gold to get out of here. Maybe they should get out of the country. If they managed that, then they wouldn’t have to worry about someone like Eric catching up to her. They would no longer be bound to the laws of the United States.
Travis opened the door and stepped onto the porch. “I don’t think we’ll have many more days where we can enjoy being outside this year.”
“Nope,” Eric replied, turning his attention to him. “Soon it’ll be too cold to do much of anything but stay inside and wait for spring. Though knowing you, you won’t notice. Not with all the time you spend out in your workshop making things.”
Travis grinned. “I suppose it is to my advantage that I work inside, but I don’t spend all of my time working. Not anymore.”
“It’s nice to see you finally living life instead of hiding from it,” Eric told him.
“Allie’s been good for me. The girls have been, too. It’s nice to wake up and know you’re with people who accept you for who are instead of what you look like.”
Carl didn’t understand why Travis insisted on making such a big deal out of the way he looked. So what if he had scars on his face? It didn’t make him ugly.
Carl shouldn’t feel at odds with Travis. Travis had always been nice to him. Even while most of the people in town thought he’d murdered Lydia, Travis hadn’t. In fact, he owed Travis a lot since Travis had helped him when Jerry had threatened him. Travis and Eric had probably been the only two people who believed he was innocent during that difficult time in his life.
So why did Carl experience a sudden burst of irritation with Travis? The answer came to him as soon as he thought of the question. Travis didn’t have to worry about Eric finding out his wife was an outlaw with a huge bounty on her head. He wasn’t harboring such a dark and terrible secret. So, of course, Travis could relax and enjoy this afternoon.
“Are you alright, Carl?”
Blinking out of his thoughts, Carl looked over at Travis. “I’m fine. I’m just thinking of when I can start panning for gold next spring, that’s all.” Yes, it was a lie, but it was better than telling them the truth.
“I hate to be the one to mention this,” Eric began, “but what if there isn’t as much gold in that stream as you think there is?”
Then his entire life would have been wasted, but Carl decided not to say that. Instead, he said, “My father was told the stream was rich in gold. It’s just a matter of finding it.”
“But what if the gold isn’t there?” Eric asked. “Do you think you could be happy living here for the rest of your life?”
“I’ve already discovered gold there,” Carl replied. “I just haven’t hit the area where there’s a lot of it.”
“I don’t think that’s what Eric means,” Travis spoke up. “He wants to know if you can be happy if you don’t end up getting rich. What if you won’t be able to leave? Can you find a way to be content with staying here for the rest of your life?”
“No,” Carl replied. “Juliet and I need to get out of here.”
It wasn’t just him anymore. He had her to worry about, and there was no way he was going to risk her staying here. It was just a matter of time before another Wanted poster made its way to this town, the preacher remembered where he’d seen her face, or someone came looking for her.
“Is there something bothering you?” Eric asked, studying him.
“No. I told you I’m fine.” Carl gulped down his coffee and then stood up. “I need to head back before it gets dark.”
Without waiting for them to answer, he went into the cabin. The women looked over at him from where they sat around the kitchen table.
“I think we should head back,” he told Juliet as he put the empty cup on the table. “We have a long ride home, and there’s only so much sunlight left. I hope you don’t mind.”
“No, I don’t mind,” Juliet replied then rose up from her seat.
“I’m sorry you have to go so soon,” Caroline said while he went to get Juliet’s coat. “But I understand. I’m glad you made the trip into town.”
He returned to Juliet and helped her slip her coat on. “Thank you for inviting us,” he told Caroline. With a glance at Allie, he said, “It was nice seeing you again.” Then he led Juliet out of the cabin and to their wagon.
“Carl, is everything alright?” Juliet asked.
“Everything’s fine. I just wanted to leave before it gets too late, that’s all.”
He helped her in, barely noting the way her hand felt in his. He had to use what was left of the season and renew his efforts to find gold, and he needed to start on it tonight. If Eric found out her secret, he would be compelled to follow the letter of the law. For him, the world was black and white. There was only good and bad.
But Carl could see the grays, and he knew that whatever Juliet had done, she’d done it because she’d had to—not because she’d wanted to. If Eric couldn’t sympathize with the situation Lydia had put Jerry in, there was no way he’d give Juliet a chance. Getting rid of the Wanted poster was only a temporary reprieve. He needed a permanent solution, and the only permanent solution he had was getting out of the country.
Juliet waited until he was sitting beside her before asking, “Did one of the men say something to upset you?”
“No, they were fine,” he replied. “I just want to head home, that’s all.”
There was no sense in making her worry by letting her know their town sheriff would be content to put her in jail or let her hang for her crime. Who knew if she wouldn’t run off? And what was more, who knew if she’d even tell him? She might leave without saying anything, figuring that as long as he didn’t know where she was or what she’d done, then no one could come after him. He couldn’t risk losing her. Whatever it took, he was going to make sure they stayed together.
“It takes longer to get to our home than it does for Allie and Travis to get to theirs,” he finally added. “I just want to make sure there’s plenty of daylight left by the time we get back.”
“Well, it is a long trip from here to our home,” she said.
Good. She didn’t seem to suspect he had an ulterior motive. Forcing a carefree smile, he nodded. “Right. It is.”
Seeming content, she didn’t press him further about the issue. Relieved, he let out a sigh. Now all he had to do was make up some chore he needed to do outside, and he then could go to the stream and dig up some pay dirt to bring into the barn. He’d dig up enough of it so he could pan for gold until the temperatures dropped so low the water froze. He figured he had another month before he had to worry about that. The more gold he found, the better off they’d be by spring.
On their way through the town, Hank stopped his leisurely walk to stare at him. Carl stiffened. Hank wouldn’t express his grievances with him while Juliet was there, would he? Fortunately, he didn’t. But even so, it wasn’t until Carl safely passed him that he was able to relax.
“What’s his problem?” Juliet asked.
“He blames me for Jerry’s death,” he replied. “He thinks if I had been able to control Lydia, then she wouldn’t have gone around town sleeping with as many men as she could.”
“She was unfaithful?”
Noting the surprise in her voice, he said, “That man who was staring at me was one of the men she was with.”
She glanced back at Hank. “Really? But he’s so old.”
“Well, she found something worth sleeping with.” There was no way he was going to tell her Hank was better in bed than he was. That would be too embarrassing. “He wasn’t the only one,” he continued as she turned back to face him. “I think she went from one man to another because she was always searching for something to make her happy but couldn’t find it. Even if I had found enough gold to make us rich, I don’t think it would have satisfied her.”
“I know people like that. The more you give, the more they want. I don’t know if there’s anything you can do with people like that.”
Her voice grew soft as she spoke, and he had a feeling she did understand what he was talking about. “There isn’t. All you can do is try to stay away from them as much as possible.” And that was one good thing Lydia had done for him. She’d spent most of her time in town.
Juliet closed the distance between them and slipped her arm around his. “At least you don’t have to live with her anymore.” Then she rested her head on his shoulder as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
He was too shocked to stop her. Yes, she’d held him in the loft, but that was only because she’d wanted to warm him up. That had been something she’d probably done on instinct. This time when she touched him, she’d done it with intent. He wasn’t quite sure what the intent was, but he knew she did it because she cared about him.
And that was nice. Besides his mother, no one had done anything like this for him. But he couldn’t tell her this. Not without seeming weak. So he kept his mouth shut and enjoyed the fact that she didn’t let go of him for the rest of the ride home.