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The next morning Sally woke long before the others. She’d laid awake tossing and turning most of the night. Soon she’d find Matthew.
She cooked an early breakfast and hoped the smell would wake the others. Huckabee had asked her to cook for them while he got his wares ready to sell. She’d happily agreed.
Finally, she heard the others stirring.
Huckabee woke cheerfully. He sat up and smoothed a hand through his hair. “Well, now. It’s nice to have a woman along. What a smell to rouse a man!”
His chatter broke the silence, waking the others. Rob seemed to have woken in a bad mood.
Sally sent him a smile as she served the bacon and biscuits. Soon they’d visit the boarding house and she’d learn where Luke and Matthew had gone. Nothing could spoil her mood.
Once she’d rinsed the breakfast dishes, she smoothed her dress and gave Rob her best smile. “Are you ready to visit the boarding house?”
“Yes. Get Carolyn.”
They headed off toward the other end of town where the sign, Mrs. Bailey Stamps - Boarding House hung from a whitewashed building.
Sally smiled at everyone she passed.
Moss and Huckabee had set up everything for the show and they headed into town to collect customers.
To Sally, it seemed as if it took forever, but at last they reached the building and stepped onto the porch. She looked at Carolyn, smoothed her hair and stood tall.
Rob knocked on the door.
A short, pudgy woman opened it. “Rooms are taken this evening, but one will open tomorrow. I can lay pallets in the parlor if there’s no other place in town.”
“May we step inside?” Rob inquired with a calm smile.
“Certainly.” She glanced at Carolyn and softened. “Perhaps your little girl would like a sugar cookie.”
Carolyn tugged at Sally’s skirt. “Mama, please?”
“You may.”
They followed Mrs. Stamps into the kitchen where dishes stood stacked high after the morning meal.
“I’ve been short-handed since my youngest left home.”
Rob twisted his hat in his hands. This was a tricky subject. He’d made Sally promise to let him do the talking. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see her bite her lip, forcing herself to remain silent.
He waited until Mrs. Stamps settled Carolyn on a tall stool with a cookie and a glass of milk.
“Ma’am, one of the reasons we’ve come is that Sally here is looking for her husband and son. They came through here a few months ago and she’s come to find them.”
Mrs. Stamps looked at Sally and Carolyn then clucked, “Poor dears.”
“We heard they might’ve stayed with you for a night.”
“Lot’s of folks come through here.”
“His name is Luke Wheeler.”
Mrs. Stamps glanced at him sharply. “Luke Wheeler!”
Her face puckered as if she’d tasted something sour.
Sally gasped. Mrs. Stamps had recognized his name. And her reaction said it all. She must have seen him. “Did he come here? Did he have my little boy with him? How long did they stay? Did he say where they were going?”
Mrs. Stamps hesitated as she looked back and forth between Rob and Sally.
Rob took a step back where Sally couldn’t see him and shook his head.
Mrs. Stamps watched him as she answered. “He came through.” She hesitated. “He stayed here. He never paid for his room.”
“I’m so sorry.” Sally blushed. No wonder the woman looked sour when she heard his name. “I’d pay you if I had the money.”
“You aren’t the one that owes it.” Mrs. Stamps looked as if she wanted to say more but wouldn’t in front of Carolyn. Only the tensing of her jaw betrayed her deep frustration.
“Did he say where they were going?” Sally pleaded, anxiously. “Was Matthew all right?”
“No, he didn’t say where. I heard he went on to the next town and stayed for a while.”
“Can you tell me anything else?” Sally implored.
Mrs. Stamps walked over to a sideboard where a daguerreotype of a beautiful young girl stood. The girl’s innocent eyes shone from out of a heart-shaped face.
“No.” For an instant, wistfulness stole into her expression. She caressed the frame then looked at Rob. “I have nothing else to tell you.”
“We’ll be going then. Thank you for your time,” he said.
Sally reached for Carolyn’s hand. “I’m sorry about the money. I wish I had it to give you. Thank you for the information and the cookies.”
The woman nodded but didn’t reply.
Rob led Sally and Carolyn out as the woman stood running her fingers over the photo.
Sally seemed oblivious to the subtle clues Mrs. Stamps had given him.
Rob watched her captivating smile and listened to her all the way back to the camp.
Now they’d have to go on to the next town. The girl in the photo was the one he’d heard about. The girl had fallen for Luke. Word was she lived at the saloon now.
“We’ll find Matthew soon, I just know it,” Sally said.
He watched the bounce in Sally’s step as she walked along with Carolyn.
Rumor was the saloon girl carried Luke’s child. If it were true, Sally had more disappointment coming. He’d convince her a saloon was no place for her to visit.
“Won’t be long,” he replied as he watched her face.
What was it with women and Luke? Couldn’t they see what a liar he was? He felt bad about the girl and wondered why she didn’t go home to her mother. Mrs. Stamps seemed friendly and obviously liked children. Someone ought to convince the girl to return home.
Here he was again, caught up in problems Luke created. Problems that were none of his business.
He’d grown soft traveling with Sally. Before he met her, he’d have ridden through without any notice of anyone else’s problems.
As they neared the wagon, he noted that a crowd had gathered.
Huckabee stepped up onto the platform in front. He wore a tall black hat and a silver vest under a black coat.
Stuffed peacock.
He glanced at Sally. Her eyes shone with excitement, and she smiled with an air of pleasure. Surely she didn’t find that fat bird attractive?
Carolyn began to run toward the crowd, but Rob reached out a hand and drew her back.
“Stay with me,” he said, “I’ll need you to help me get the horses ready.”
Sally looked at him in confusion. “Get the horses ready for what?”
“To ride.”
“Shouldn’t we wait to see the show? Mr. Huckabee won’t be ready to ride for some time.”
“Exactly.”
“Rob, I’m surprised at you. Ready to ride off and leave a man after he’s helped us out, feeding us and all.”
In the silence that followed, Sally realized what she’d just said.
Rob looked straight down into her eyes. “You’re one to talk about riding off and leaving a man. Seems despite what I’d done for you, you didn’t mind leaving me behind.”
Sally swallowed as he continued to look deeply into her eyes. She’d gone off and left Rob after Carolyn recovered. He was right. Ashamed of herself, she broke eye contact.
Yes, she’d done it and he’d not said a word to her about it. He’d continued helping them out. He was a good man. She didn’t understand why he wanted to ride off but she wouldn’t say any more. He must have a good reason.
Rob stood watching her closely and waiting for her to say something.
She looked up at him and smiled. “All right, Rob, whatever you wish.”
Rob felt surprised. He’d expected her to excuse her behavior or deny it or argue with him about leaving. He hadn’t expected the gentle angelic smile she gave him and the look in her eyes that told him she’d do what he asked, no questions. He felt such a surge of tenderness, protectiveness and love for her that he could hardly speak.
Love. Yes, that’s what he felt for her, love. Like nothing he’d ever felt before. He’d felt it creeping up on him but hadn’t put the word to it before now. Here it hit him, full blown. Love.
Men did crazy things for love. He’d never meant for it to happen, but it had.
And now he had to deal with it. Briskly he said, “Come on. You can listen to his speechmaking while we get ready.”
They walked around to where the horses stood and packed their belongings.
The crowd appeared mesmerized as Huckabee spoke.
Moss stood stiffly by his side with his shirt off as Huckabee pointed to him as an example of the miracle cure. Moss shifted from one foot to another as his skin turned blue from the cold. He kept glancing down, embarrassed.
Huckabee rolled along, talking at a mighty pace.
Sally stood holding the reins as Rob packed Moss’s mount.
Soon hands raised in the hair as Huckabee called for his “friends” and “neighbors” to purchase the fantastic elixir.
Moss threw his arms into the sleeves of his shirt and handed out bottles wherever Huckabee directed him. Huckabee pocketed all the money.
“Let’s move along behind the wagon,” Rob said. “Moss will join us when he’s done.”
“Shouldn’t we at least thank Mr. Huckabee for all he’s done?” Sally asked.
“No need. Moss has thanked him enough.”
They waited behind the wagon.
Moss rushed around the back. “Let’s go.”
He mounted and they rode away.
“You left in a hurry,” Sally said. “Is something wrong?”
“Nothin’ the sheriff cain’t fix. He’s fixin’ to close down Huckabee’s show an’ we ain’t gonna be nowhere’s nearby when them folks start complainin’ ’bout their ills.”
“Why, Moss, you mean that elixir didn’t work?”
“No more’n horse spittle. An’ I ain’t goin’ to spend my nights in no jail for fancied up crick water.”
Sally appeared shocked.
When they stopped to water the horses Rob asked, “Sally, how old were you when you got married?”
“Almost seventeen. We celebrated my birthday a week after our wedding.”
Rob didn’t reply. He peered at her. He’d figured her to be at least twenty-one when she married. But she’d married young. Being isolated on that farm at the age of seventeen must’ve kept her from learning about folks like Huckabee and their tricky ways.
He forced himself to bring up the unspeakable subject that he’d put off asking her for so long. “Have you thought about what you’ll do once you find Matthew?”
“I haven’t made any plans.”
“If Luke were dead what would you do?”
“He’s alive.” She spoke with quiet but desperate firmness then glared at him stubbornly.
He’d made her angry.
He could tell by the way her chin jutted out. Well, she might be angry, but she had to think about what he’d said.
“Sally, he owes a lot of people money. Any man who owes that many people, eventually he’s gonna get himself shot.”
Her eyes widened as tears hovered on her eyelashes, ready to fall. “What a mean thing to say.”
“No. Not a mean thing. A true thing.” He let out a long, audible breath. “A mean thing is when a man lies to a woman, because he doesn’t want to see her cry, because he doesn’t want to put himself out.”
Tears began to trickle down her face.
Doggone it.
He pressed on. “Sally, a man who cares about a woman tells her the truth even when she doesn’t want to hear it.”
She continued to cry and as he watched her, it occurred to him that tears were one way to keep men at a distance. Something he’d never thought of before.
In spite of the fact he still felt mighty nervous around a crying woman, he grabbed her by the elbows. “Sally Mae, look at me.”
Her accusing eyes met his, as tears ran down her face.
“I’ve never done a single thing to hurt you, and I never will. Sometimes a person doesn’t want to hear a truth because it causes them pain, but not to tell it true would hurt them more. Now I know you’re upset but I want you to think about this. What will you and the children do?” He let go of her. “Because you need a plan and you need to be prepared for the worst.”
He’d said all he had to say.
Sally turned her back to him, folded her arms and stood crying. She still wasn’t speaking to him.
Well, confound it he couldn’t do more than that. He stomped off. He’d never known a woman who frustrated him so.
Sally sat by the stream and cried until she ran out of tears. How could he be so mean? Luke couldn’t be dead. He couldn’t. Because if he was dead what might have happened to Matthew? Just the thought of it shattered her. She didn’t want to think about it.
Her only plan until now had been to confront Luke and get Matthew back. Then she would worry about what she and the children would do.
Luke couldn’t be dead. She’d find him alive, and she’d get Matthew back and then she’d worry about the rest.
She fought to keep the fragile control she’d held onto since finding Luke’s note. In her heart she’d always been afraid that she’d never find Matthew.
But what was wrong with Rob?
Sally had noticed the way he’d choked out Luke’s name like it was a word he couldn’t stomach. She knew then that Rob hated Luke enough to kill him. She knew without being told that this was Rob’s plan.
Yet Rob was gentle with Carolyn. How could a man be both hard and gentle?
When Carolyn whined about missing out on the guitar singing, he’d promised to play for her once they got settled. He said he’d come by to visit after he got his own guitar. Then he’d taught her cowboy songs while they rode.
Sally wondered where he’d learned the songs. She didn’t know much about him, where he came from, what he’d done with his life, how old he was. Why had he wanted to know how old she was? He’d seemed intense lately, watching her even keener than before.
She looked down into the creek at her dry skin and her tangled hair.
I probably look like an old woman. No man will want me.
But there weren’t many options for a woman with two children to feed and no family or money to help her do it.
“Be alive, Matthew,” she whispered.
The rest she would worry about later.
Rob waited patiently for Sally to return from the creek.
He and Moss made stew out of the fish the old man caught. They’d started to eat by the time Sally walked slowly back toward the fire. She sat as if she’d been walking all day.
Rob could see the remainders of tear streaks on her face.
Moss glanced accusingly at him but didn’t speak.
Carolyn chattered and Rob answered her questions, all the while watching Sally.
She ate then got up to clean the dishes. She still hadn’t spoken.
Rob didn’t feel inclined to make conversation with her. She put Carolyn to bed then everyone went to sleep except Rob.
He sat awake wondering. Had he done and said the right thing? She’d been thinking about something. He wished he knew what it was.
She seemed wilted, not like the Sally he’d come to know. He’d apologize in the morning. He wouldn’t take back his words, for they were true, but he felt bad about hurting her.
Once again, he’d get no sleep. He hadn’t been able to keep the truth from her any longer. He’d as much as told her he’d kill Luke.
What would she do about that?
He’d just thrown a bucket of water on the “flames of love” as Moss had called it.
Rob wrapped his blanket around his shoulders and hunched down to brood. Nothing even remotely connected with Luke had ever been anything but bad for Rob.
He didn’t know why he’d expected Sally to be any different.