Chapter Thirteen

 

 

 

Hyacinth nearly lost the few bites of breakfast she’d managed that morning when she saw Offer leave the makeshift courtroom. Her belly was twisting into knots and her legs threatened to dissolve, but staring at Offer had helped her maintain her stance, if not her pride. When he’d gripped Raines’ shoulder and hauled the man out of the saloon, Hyacinth had nearly burst into tears.

When Offer didn’t return after thirty minutes, Hyacinth thought her heart would simply stop and save her from the spectacle of her own trial. She was hurt that settling his issues with the other rancher was more important to him than supporting her in her darkest hour. And thinking of how much hope she’d been filled with when he’d come to her the night before only added insult to injury.

Though the rude suggestions and comments from the crowd of onlookers continued, and though the judge persisted in watching her with an expression that made Hyacinth entirely uncomfortable, she was finally allowed to retake her seat. She collapsed onto it and sat with rigid posture, in spite of the terror and despair urging her to curl up into a tiny ball.

Bill patted her knee. “Offer ain’t gonna let you work here, lovey. Don’t you worry none.”

“He’s not even here, and he may not have a choice anyway,” she whispered. “I don’t think the judge is going to rule in my favor and Offer doesn’t have three hundred dollars to pay for his water rights, let alone to compensate a debt I shouldn’t owe.”

“Give Jack a chance to sort this mess out.”

The kid was trying, Hyacinth knew, but he wasn’t having great success against the stubborn judge’s partiality. Horsham had laid on the charm from the first moment, and Hyacinth could only assume he’d done the same at his initial meeting with the judge. Hyacinth had thought Wiggins would listen to her side and see reason, but that wasn’t proving to be the case.

Still, Jack argued relentlessly. “You paid for her travel expenses, and she did, in fact, come to Creek Bend. Is that correct, Mr. Horsham?”

Ernest scowled. “She’s sitting right there, ain’t she?”

“And when she arrived, did she appear to go back on her promise to marry you, sir?”

“Hell, no!” someone from the crowd called out. “I was there! Horsham really gave her what-for, when he saw her eyes and all them wrinkles around them.”

“Yeah!” another man shouted. “He was convinced he was getting some young girl just out of the schoolroom, but an old maid showed up instead. Had her sobbing in no time.”

Jack’s expression became more severe with the raucous laughter surrounding them. “In other words, Mr. Horsham, Miss Woodley traveled all the way to Creek Bend, away from her home and family, an entire life left behind for the promise of marrying you. And you publicly humiliated her, then abandoned her to her fate after turning the community’s opinion against her. Did you get cold feet?”

Ernest crossed his arms. “I don’t want an old woman.”

“Miss Woodley is in her late twenties,” Jack said. “Which may be older than what you had expected, but hardly so old—and not nearly ugly enough—to qualify as a hag, which is one of the insults you’ve hurled her way.”

“She’s defective. Look at her.” Ernest jerked his chin in her direction. “My daddy ran around with a woman with two different eyes, and the first time they argued, he dropped dead. Cursed, evil—I don’t know, but I don’t want no truck with it.”

“You have argued with Miss Woodley,” Jack pointed out, “yet you are still alive.”

Ernest lifted his bandaged leg. “She set her dogs on me without a word. I find that suspicious, being that I’m a God-fearing man.”

“I find it suspicious myself,” Judge Wiggins interjected.

Jack nodded toward the judge. “Your honor, Horsham was trespassing on the Double O and physically attacked Miss Woodley. The dogs are simply protective of her, because she is their main caretaker.”

“How do you care-take a damned dog?” Wiggins demanded.

“She feeds them.” Jack waved toward Hyacinth. “Mr. Offer O’Neal, owner of the Double O, as well as Miss Woodley’s common law husband, was on site at the time Mr. Horsham attacked Miss Woodley.”

“They ain’t married,” Ernest spat. “He’s done told everyone that he isn’t married to her. That makes her his whore, which goes right along with what I said about her loose morals. What kind of woman takes up with a man ten minutes after leaving her fiancé?”

A muscle in Jack’s jaw jumped, but his voice was coldly even. “She didn’t leave her fiancé, her fiancé left her. She was alone, friendless in an unfamiliar town, with nowhere to stay. Mr. O’Neal took her to his home, providing room and board in exchange for housekeeping services.”

One of the women in the crowd cackled. “Uh-huh, she’s servicing him, all right!”

Ernest jumped up and threw his arms out, appealing to the masses. “Loose morals!”

Hyacinth’s cheeks grew hot, but she refused to lower her gaze. A spark of outrage jolted down her spine at the woman’s audacity. A saloon woman who earned her keep by spreading her legs for every john that passed through town had the nerve to disparage Hyacinth for taking up with one man. Hyacinth balled her fists in her lap and bit her lip.

“We are not here to discuss the evolution of the relationship between Miss Woodley and Mr. O’Neal,” Jack thundered. “Suffice it to say—”

“They may be living as man and wife,” Judge Wiggins interrupted, “and I can’t blame the man for pushing the woman into his bed, but Mr. O’Neal has publicly denied his claims of being a husband to Miss Woodley. And, in fact, Mr. Rodgers, you continue to refer to them by separate surnames, so I must conclude that she is nothing more than his mistress.”

“Common law marriages—”

The judge once again interrupted Jack. “No! That does not apply when the groom denounces his supposed wife before they’ve even spent any time together. It’s my understanding that Miss Woodley has only been here for a little over two weeks, which is not enough to form a common law marriage.”

Jack tried once more. “Your honor—”

“I have come to my decision.” Judge Wiggins lifted his hands and the rowdy crowd slowly quieted.

Jack stepped back toward Hyacinth and placed a hand on her shoulder. She patted his fingers. Jack had surprised her and warmed her straight through, pushing past his natural reticence long enough to represent her at the trial. She knew in her heart that he’d failed, but she appreciated how hard he’d tried.

“I find that Miss Woodley did deceive Mr. Horsham.” The judge’s voice boomed. “She lied about her appearance, her age and her moral code. However, she also contributed to her travel funds by paying for her own lodging and food, so I will deduct that cost from what Mr. Horsham has requested.”

Ernest shook his head. “But, your honor—”

Wiggins forestalled him with an uplifted palm. “In addition, I do find that Miss Woodley intentionally instigated the dog attack on Mr. Horsham and therefore owes him repayment for his medical bills and recompense for the hardship he will face in his occupation due to his injuries.”

“He attacked me!” Hyacinth sputtered, beside herself with shock and distress. “He had no business even being out on the Double O and was asked to leave several times before the dogs bit him.”

“Miss Woodley!” Wiggins turned hard, angry eyes in her direction. “A female has no place testifying in my courtroom, do you understand? You are not to speak unless spoken to and certainly have no right to speak while I’m speaking!”

Hyacinth tightened her lips and threw herself back against her chair. The judge hadn’t seemed to mind the saloon women commenting, and the memory of exactly what those women had said burned through Hyacinth’s veins like acid. Bill placed a supportive hand on her knee and Hyacinth gripped it with both of hers.

“Since I am deciding against you,” the judge continued in a harsh tone, “you are responsible for the court fees, and your little outburst has seen you in contempt. Therefore, the entire sum owed by you to Mr. Horsham and this court equal three hundred dollars.”

Her mouth dropped. “That’s the same amount—”

Judge Wiggins slapped his hand on his table. “Are you speaking again, Miss Woodley?”

Tears of frustration welling up in her eyes, Hyacinth simply shook her head in the negative.

Wiggins settled back. “Please pay your fees, Miss Woodley.”

Jack stepped forward. “She doesn’t have the money, your honor. No one in this town has that kind of money.”

“Then she’ll work at the saloon until she can pay it off.” The judge’s gaze got caught on Hyacinth’s bodice. “What time do your girls start working, Molly?”

Offer’s voice roared through the room. “She’s not fucking working here, Judge Wiggins!”

Hyacinth’s head snapped around. Offer was a beautiful sight, even when he kicked a man and ordered, “Move!”

Holding a thick stack of cash money aloft, Offer physically shoved his way through the crowd, violently tossing people out his way and even climbing onto the scattered tables to gain access to the cleared space in front of the judge.

She couldn’t even imagine where he’d gotten so much money. An undefined mix of emotions made Hyacinth’s world spin too wildly to think of anything beyond Offer’s return. Blazing heat snaked through her entire body and shuddered in her muscles until Hyacinth felt as if she were dissolving in a vat of lye. She put a shaking hand to her temple as relief and hope battled fear and despondency. Her heart started pounding, but she felt as if she’d taken her first real breath in days. She held Bill’s fingers in a stranglehold.

Offer peeled off the required number of bills and slapped them on the table in front of the judge. “There’s everything my wife owes.”

“You’re not married.” But his statement didn’t prevent the judge from scooping up the money and pocketing his share. “You can’t be held responsible for her debts.”

“Then marry us now,” Offer challenged, “and put this argument to rest once and for all.”

Wiggins raised an eye brow. “That’s ten dollars for a marriage license.”

Offer slapped the money on the counter. Wiggins nodded. “Congratulations, you’re married. Everyone here will stand witness.”

“What about the license?”

The judge shrugged. “I’ll get to it when I get to it. Plant a baby in the woman and a piece of paper won’t matter anyway.” He turned to Ernest and indicated the money left on the table. “Now then, sir, you owe me fifty dollars.”

Ernest stopped hooting. His eyes bulged and his mouth worked. “But, she paid your court fees!”

Judge Wiggins hefted his eyebrows. “That was court fees, Mr. Horsham. You, however, owe me reimbursement for my travel out here and lodgings in accordance to my station. I could not be expected to stay in ramshackle places, being a judge of this fine land.”

“You were only two days’ travel away, Judge!”

“I had to rearrange my schedule for you, and the towns I passed through were expensive, Mr. Horsham. In addition to my hotel fees, I also had to provide proper food and lodgings for my horse and buggy, both nights. And, of course, I’ll be required to stay here this evening.”

Molly the saloon woman cackled and rubbed her hands together. “Top shelf whiskey ain’t cheap, judge! You’ll owe me twenty dollars by the end of this trial.”

“I’m not paying for your drinks!” Ernest thundered. “That’ll only leave me with a hundred dollars.”

The judge slammed his hand on the table, making the money jump and flutter. “I find you in contempt, Mr. Horsham. That’ll be an extra fee of fifty dollars.”

“Ernest won’t have a penny to his name if he don’t shut up.” Behind Hyacinth, a saloon woman laughed. “Still, it’ll be a good night around here. Between the girls and the booze, we’ll get Ernest’s hundred from the judge before Molly lets him leave her bed.”

In a daze, Hyacinth’s eyes drifted toward the woman in question. The brightly colored cosmetics coated her lips to a garish degree, but still didn’t manage to hide the oozing wound on her mouth.

Shaking his head, Offer crossed to Hyacinth and pulled her from her chair. “Come on, Mrs. O’Neal. Let’s get the hell out of here.”

“I’m…oh my…I—” Hyacinth looked around, dazed and half-terrified that Offer’s last-minute rescue wasn’t real. She tightened her hold on his arm, trying to prove to herself that she wasn’t suffering from some terrible delusion.

Offer gentled his harsh tone. “Come on, darlin’. The judge has got his money and can’t hold you any longer. Let’s go home.”

Huddled into Offer’s side and uncoordinated with the sense of safety his arm around her shoulders inspired, Hyacinth tried not to look at the faces around her as they dove into the crowd. It took a few minutes to push through the surging press of people extending their falsely hearty well-wishes and make their escape. It took another few minutes for Jack and Bill to catch up.

“Where did you get all that money to pay the judge?” Hyacinth hugged Offer’s arm and stared up at him as her heart seemed to expand in her chest, but before he could answer, Joe Raines popped through the doorway next to them.

With a nod in their direction, the man tipped his hat. “Nice doing business with you, O’Neal.”

“I’ll be by your place tomorrow with Zeus.” Offer held out his hand to other man.

“Better make it next week. I think I’ll ride into River’s Edge tomorrow and see what I can do to bring down a corrupt judge.” Raines released Offer’s hand and mounted his horse. With another nod in their direction, he rode out of town.

“I’m gonna have to change my opinion of that man,” Offer muttered.

Hyacinth dug in her heels before Offer could step off the boardwalk. “You gave him your horse?”

“He made me an offer and I accepted.” Offer’s lips quirked as Hyacinth gasped. “Quit your worrying, woman. Raines didn’t like the way Horsham insulted you and couldn’t stomach that crooked judge at all. He knows that’s not how a lady should be treated.”

“But, after the way he pressured you for the money you owed him—”

“Seems Raines is a good enough man to give a little slack, when he sees a fellow in need. We’ve decided to put the past behind us and found a compromise that gets us both what we want. I’m going to put Zeus to a couple of his mares, and he felt so dang bad for you, he threw in free water rights for the next year.”

“Oh.” Tears welled up anew in Hyacinth’s eyes. “I was afraid you’d sold your horse for me.”

“I would have, and the trade would have been more than fair.” Offer’s big hand cupped her jaw, tilting her lips up so he could brush his over them. “That horse isn’t the future of the Double O, darlin’. We are.”