Sixteen

The sun was still bright when Elam rode Moondance through the tunnel of trees at the edge of his ranch. If he listened hard enough, he could imagine he heard the rushing gurgle of Sweet Water Creek as it ran into White River up ahead. He could see the peak of the house and smoke drifting from the kitchen chimney as he neared the pasture clearing.

Most times, Elam considered himself a good judge of character, but today he doubted that ability. US Marshal Driscoll Frey had thrown him, and that was disturbing. Usually, if he was able to read a person, he could predict future actions. Timothy was easy to read. He was a farm boy who only wanted to get home.

Frey, however, was a different story. Would he even release the kid? What part of his talk today was lying and what was truth? Elam knew he was lying about Susanna being a killer, but how far had he taken those lies?

Elam patted Moondance’s sweaty neck and gave him his lead, knowing the stallion would head straight for the barn, where he would expect a good combing and an extra portion of oats and molasses.

When he reached the top of the ridge and started down toward the house, a woman in a blue dress stepped off the porch and across the yard, shading her eyes from the late evening sun. Keara.

As if sensing his master’s eagerness to get home, Moondance broke into a trot and then eased into a ground-covering canter. The closer Elam drew to the house, the more he liked what he saw.

Keara carried a dress well. Her pale gold hair was tied back from her face, revealing the high cheekbones, pointed chin, and enchanting golden-brown eyes. This woman—his friend, his occasional farmhand, who roughhoused with the kids and had been known to snort like a foal—could also be a lady. He’d discovered that on their wedding day, but he’d expected her to revert to her old self after the festivities were over.

He’d never seen her in that dress before, and he’d never seen so much of her skin. Beautiful, creamy-looking skin without a flaw.

He couldn’t stop looking at her, and as he rode into the barnyard, he slowed so the dust wouldn’t cover her and then stopped in front of her. The creamy skin turned rosy.

“Ready for supper?” she asked.

He grinned. Keara was always practical. “Did you get word to Timothy’s folks?”

“Jael was saddling up when I left their house. The Skerits are likely on their way to Cassville by now.”

“Good job. I wish I’d had time to explain.”

“I understood well enough.”

He slid from the saddle. “I can smell the fried chicken from here.”

“And bread pudding, green beans, cornbread.”

His smile widened. “All my favorites.” He turned and looked down into her face, which held a blush as well as her body held a dress.

“I figured Susanna could use a solid meal now that her fever’s gone.” Keara reached for Moondance’s reins and started to lead him toward the barn. “Get washed up and I’ll get this saddle off—”

He took the reins from her hand. “Not in that dress, you won’t. Let me do the outside chores today so you can stay pretty for a little while, okay?”

She blinked up at him as if flustered.

“Susanna’s better?” he asked. “That was fast.”

“I don’t trust it to last, of course. There’s always a setback when a person refuses to rest.” Keara followed him into the barn with her hand on Moondance’s sweaty rump. “She’s weak, but she’s showing signs of impatience already. It could get her in trouble if she’s not careful.”

“Which goes to show you have more doctor sense than a sick doctor. We’ll have to watch her closely.”

“I have been.”

He looked over his shoulder at Keara. “Gloria did that kind of thing, you know. She was always impatient with her own illnesses.”

“She sure was. I could never get her to slow down when she had a goal to reach, and she always had a goal to reach.” Keara hesitated. “I don’t mean to be disrespectful of the dead.”

“It’s not disrespectful to recognize the truth.” He uncinched the straps of the saddle and glanced at Keara as he bared Moondance’s back. She was staring into the deepening shadows of the barn, her eyes darkened, her small teeth worrying her lower lip as if the memories of Gloria continued to haunt her.

Keara lifted the lid from the bin of oats and reached inside, obviously unaware that she was likely to get molasses on her sleeve.

Elam just shook his head and removed Moondance’s bridle as Keara ladled the oats into the trough.

“Did you get any more answers from Susanna while I was gone?” He ran a curry comb over Moondance’s haunches.

“She was waiting for you to return so she could tell us all she knows.”

“Good. At least she finally trusts us. Maybe we can help.”

“She always trusted you. I was the problem.”

“Obviously, you’ve proven yourself to her since Monday.”

Keara grabbed a brush and started to work on Moondance’s haunches. Elam took the brush away from her and gently eased her aside. He allowed his hands to rest on her arms as he looked down into her face and enjoyed the curve of her chin, the surprise in her eyes, and the slight dimple on her cheek when her face flushed once more.

“Sometimes, all a lovely lady needs to do is stand there and look lovely,” he told her. “You’re not a servant on this ranch, Keara, you’re the lady of the house. Don’t feel you must always be busy serving others.”

“But what could it hurt if it helps get you to the dinner table faster?”

Elam chuckled and turned back to the horse. “I’ll work quickly.”

“You and the marshal were in some pretty deep talk before you left. How far did you go with him and his prisoner?”

“Far enough to keep a horse from breaking a leg near the caves or bolting when the train came through Butler Hollow.”

“You could have simply warned him before they left.”

“I’m still trying to figure the man out. I wanted to observe him a little longer, see how he interacted with Timothy.”

“What did you find out?”

“He didn’t mistreat him while I was with them.”

“I didn’t see any other marks besides the bullet wound,” Keara said.

“Frey insisted his prisoner isn’t headed for the gallows, that this trip to Cassville is just a warning. I’m not sure I believe him.” Elam explained what the marshal had told him about being a friend of Timothy’s father and wishing to keep Timothy from riding with the gang.

“I may not know any outlaws,” Keara said, “but I’d bet my horse that Timothy Skerit isn’t riding with any outlaw gang. He told me he wasn’t, and I believe him.”

“You actually got a coherent word out of him?”

“Enough that I could understand that much. So you think the marshal intends to hurt Timothy, even after assuring you he wouldn’t?”

“I don’t trust anything he says.”

“He seems convinced Susanna’s here.”

“He knows we’re related.” Elam tamped the dust and hair from the curry comb against the railing. He glanced at Keara. “Simple logic led him here. That’s why I think he’ll be back around. We need to find out all we can about him from Susanna tonight. Is she thinking more clearly now?”

“I believe so, but that bump on the head still bothers me. Those can be tricky.”

“You’ve read up on the trephining procedure she told you about?” He placed the curry comb and brush in their cabinet and reached into Duchess’s stall to caress her soft nose.

“Yes, but it’s been a couple of days. Let’s pray that isn’t necessary.”

“While we’re at it, we should pray that Frey is telling the truth about his destination. If he’s going to Cassville, he shouldn’t be back this way until at least Friday.”

“We should take no chances with Susanna. I’ll keep her in the house.”

Elam narrowed his eyes into the same darkness Keara had been watching in the far reaches of the barn. “I say we take no chances with you or the children either. He told me Susanna shot at him, admitted he shot back. He tried to convince me she’s dangerous.”

“She told me herself that she shot at him,” Keara said. “But she’d have killed him if she’d meant to.”

“I guess we’ll hear all about it tonight, won’t we?”

Keara straightened Moondance’s bridle on its post. She adjusted the saddle and spread the horse blanket out to air.

“Time for you to get out of the barn before you mess up that pretty dress,” Elam told her.

He caught the edge of her smile as she turned away, and something urged him to venture a little more. “My mother always said that it’s the wearer that makes the dress pretty.”

She didn’t stop, but he heard a whisper of a chuckle as she left the barn. He turned back to his work and wondered how Keara’s very presence here could make the worries of the day less burdensome. And he wondered how long she’d had that effect on him without his even knowing it.

That evening, Keara carried Susanna’s supper up to her, just a small plate with a few bites of each dish she’d prepared.

Susanna went for the bread pudding first.

Keara smiled. “Your sister used to do the same thing. Dessert first. I’d ask you to join us downstairs at the table, but I don’t think you should tackle the stairs again until you’re stronger.”

“Plus you’re afraid that snoopy marshal may have trailed Elam back to the house.” Susanna took two bites of the pudding. “Delicious. Gloria never made anything like this. Your recipe?”

“Yes. About the snoopy marshal—”

“He’s a strange one.” Susanna put her fork down, and a cloud seemed to dim her sunny blue eyes.

“Eat your dinner and I’ll bring Elam up with me later. The three of us may be able to put our heads together and figure out what to do.”

“More bread pudding?” Susanna asked.

Keara grinned. “Of course.”

Susanna poked at the chicken with her fork. “Gloria’s recipe?”

Keara nodded. “It was a family favorite.”

“Our mother always was a good cook. She passed her skills down to Gloria.” She looked up at Keara. “I observed you with the children when you didn’t know I was watching and listening.”

“You were eavesdropping.”

“I was in no eave, I was lying on the sofa, simply listening with my eyes closed. I’ve had to do that a lot since I lost Nathaniel.” She paused. “It’s hard to sleep when you’re on the run, listening with your eyes closed. Actually, both of us were watching our backs before he was killed.” She swallowed. “We didn’t watch closely enough.”

“Don’t ruin your appetite. You’re not alone now, Susanna. We’ll talk about this later. I’ll bring you more bread pudding.” Keara turned to leave.

“Keara,” Susanna said, and waited until Keara had turned back. “You’re a kind person.” Her voice had softened further, as had her eyes. “I can imagine no woman I’d trust more with my niece and nephews.”

The admission surprised Keara. She moved closer to the bed. “I can’t teach them the things Gloria would have wanted them to know.”

“Dining with kings and queens and presidents?” Susanna said dryly. “As if that’s so important. Those people are just people like you and me. Most of them take themselves too seriously, and they call that culture or refinement. I call it silliness.”

That statement surprised Keara into laughter.

“Just so you know,” Susanna continued, “physicians do not make a great income, so don’t encourage the children to follow in their auntie’s footsteps for that reason.”

“I don’t believe you entered the profession for the love of money,” Keara said.

Susanna shook her head then winced as if the movement jarred her shoulder. “Most doctors struggle to make a living, and women in the profession are few because they aren’t taken seriously. The reason Nathaniel and I did well was we weren’t picky about who we treated, and Nathaniel’s portion of family wealth was enough to support us the rest of our lives, and several more lives, besides. When his father died last year, we received his portion. Combined with my own inheritance from my aunt June, I am now left with enough extra income to support a small independent state, but what good will that do me if I’m dead?”

“So why did you choose to become a doctor?” Keara asked.

“I could say it was because it was the first time I had the courage to flout Aunt June’s rules, but that was only part of the reason.”

“You didn’t really want to become a doctor?”

“Oh yes. I was always interested in medicine, but my parents sent me to live with Aunt June so I would have the advantages of proper society and an education that my other siblings never had. What that really meant was that they wanted me to marry well and become a part of the social elite. But that was Gloria’s dream, not mine.”

“Was your aunt angry that you chose medicine?”

Susanna nibbled on a corner of the small square of cornbread. She chewed it as if tasting it thoroughly then swallowed. “No. My parents were upset, but June surprised me. I lived with her all those years, afraid to offend, and when I finally did something I was sure would infuriate her, I think I earned her respect. When I met Nathaniel in medical school my whole family was pleased. Nathaniel, of course, earned his father’s ire for his choice of profession, but not enough to disinherit him.”

“Your aunt sounds like you.”

Susanna stuck her fork into the remaining bread pudding. “You think so? I always thought Gloria would have become most like June. Maybe that’s why our mother didn’t send Gloria to live with June. Gloria already had plenty of backbone. June and I became dear friends until her death two years ago.”

“Why don’t I bring that pudding now,” Keara suggested. “I made plenty.”

Susanna smiled up at her. She was a different person from the frightened and suspicious woman Keara and Elam discovered on their front porch Monday night. She motioned Keara out the door. “I think that whiskey you gave me this afternoon is loosening my tongue. I’ll take that pudding after the children have gone to bed. And then you and Elam and I can have a talk.”