by Cat Cahill
Still, she kept her eyes open and her wits about her, just in case.
She couldn’t tell James the truth last night. Her heart wouldn’t let her, especially after what he’d told her about his uncle. It didn’t matter that it hadn’t been her family. While the story had shocked her, she was also unsurprised at the violence and deception from the Fletchers. It was how they operated.
If the Fletchers were responsible for the trouble being reported, she thought there would be word by now of more fighting and more indiscriminate shooting. They tended to blaze their way through whatever county they’d landed in, while Edie’s family worked more quietly.
The fact that James’s ambush was the only real violence that had taken place didn’t bode well—not for Edie.
She picked her way over the railroad tracks as the memory of the anguish in James’s face resurfaced. She would never forget it, not as long as she lived. He’d said it felt as if it had happened only yesterday, and the emotions he wore on his face made it absolutely clear it was a loss that haunted him. Edie wasn’t a Fletcher, but she felt responsible in some way. Her family was so often lumped together with the Fletchers that it became difficult for outsiders to separate them. And knowing she still held her secret from him—a secret that might break him if he knew—intensified the guilt that pervaded her senses each time she thought about his uncle’s death.
Had he felt that from her somehow? Maybe that was why he’d backed away so suddenly.
A movement off across the tracks caught her attention and she stilled. But it was only one of the men helping to build the land office. Edie pulled in a deep breath, but walked the rest of the way to the mercantile as if her pa lurked around every corner.
The mercantile door stood open when she arrived. Edie paused outside to check her shoes for mud. Satisfied she wouldn’t track any into the store, she took one step inside and stopped still, unable to comprehend what she saw in front of her.
The store had been ransacked. There was no other way to put it. Glass jars were smashed on the floor, shelving had been pushed over, the peppermint candies that normally sat in a bowl on the counter were strewn about and crushed, and various items from shovels to hats to sweet-smelling soaps lay all about.
Edie’s breathing quickened and she dug her fingers into her reticule. Panic began to rise inside. She shoved it down. She needed to find out what had happened, and then she could panic if she needed to.
Stepping over broken glass and merchandise, she made her way to the counter where Caroline Drexel stood with bills in her hand, counting them.
Edie waited until Caroline was done before speaking. “What happened here?”
“Oh!” Caroline’s head jerked up and a hand went to her heart. “Edie. I’m so sorry, you startled me. I’m afraid I’m a little on edge after . . .” She gestured around her.
“I can see why.” Edie’s voice shook a little, and she coughed into her elbow in an effort to disguise her nerves.
Caroline tapped the bills into a neat stack. “Early this morning, we awoke to the sound of people downstairs. It wasn’t long before we started hearing glass shatter and the shelves being turned over. Thomas went downstairs, but one of them knocked him over the head.” She glanced about the room. “I’m grateful he wasn’t more hurt, and very happy they didn’t venture upstairs.”
Edie’s palms were damp under her gloves and she could barely swallow. James had also been hit on the head. “Did they . . . What did they take?” She couldn’t meet Caroline’s eyes as she spoke, instead letting them wander over the mess in the store.
“It’s hard to tell, but right now, it seems as if it was only some provisions. They didn’t find the bit of money we had behind the counter.” Caroline replaced the bills in a wooden box and set it somewhere below where Edie could see. “I only wish they hadn’t made such a mess. I don’t understand how anyone can find joy in destroying someone else’s life’s work.”
She couldn’t imagine what all of this felt like to Caroline. She had to have been terrified last night, and now to see all their hard work crushed and ruined . . . Edie wanted to go behind the counter and give her friend a reassuring hug.
But guilt snaked around her heart and she couldn’t do it. Even though she had nothing to do with what had happened here, she could almost see the scene playing out before her. Ty heaving a set of shelving over while Zeb whooped and aimed glass jars at the door. Pa would’ve been more practical, gathering tinned food and ammunition and new boots. He’d say the boys just needed to let off some steam. Cousin Nick would’ve been the one who struck Mr. Drexel. He also would’ve been the one looking for money. If he hadn’t found it, he would’ve gone searching upstairs. Something must have scared them off before he could. He wouldn’t have hurt Caroline, but she was still glad her friend was spared that fear.
“It’s quite a mess, isn’t it?” Caroline said softly, her elbows resting on the counter. “I don’t know where to start in putting things back to rights.”
That, at least, was something Edie could help with. “My shift doesn’t begin until lunch today. Let me find some of the other girls who are free this morning and we can help you.”
“Oh, would you? That would be wonderful.” Caroline smiled, and Edie’s heart lifted some. She couldn’t take back what her family had done, but she could at least help clean it up.
“Did you alert Deputy Wright yet?” Edie hesitated in offering to do this for Caroline, especially after how strangely their visit had ended last night. And because she didn’t know if she could speak to him about what had happened here without giving away the sense of responsibility she felt for it, as misplaced as it might be.
“That’s where Thomas is now. I imagine they’ll return soon.”
Edie reassured her friend she’d come back with help and made her back to the door. When she stepped outside, she stood for a moment with her back pressed against the door.
If her family was here in Crest Stone, it could only be for one reason.
Edie narrowed her eyes against the growing morning sunlight as she examined the area around the store. She stepped away from the wall and peered around the corner toward the east, as if Pa or her brothers were hiding just beyond the building. They wouldn’t be, not now. Not after the mess they made here. They knew better than that. No, they were likely hidden out somewhere outside of town, biding their time.
For what, she didn’t know. Did they only want to speak with her? Or did they have plans to force her to return to Kansas with them?
Or worse, were they hoping to use her knowledge of the hotel as a means to execute some plan to rob the place blind?
Mr. Adkins had clearly given her away. And once her family surfaced again, they’d find her. Everyone would know who she really was, and from what circumstances she’d come. Edie Dutton would be gone forever, along with all the promise of a good, honest life. Her friends would want nothing to do with her. Her employer would regret giving her a second chance. And James . . .
Her heart contracted and she sagged against the side of the mercantile. He’d want nothing to do with her. And after what had happened to his uncle, would he think she was doing the same to him? She squeezed her eyes shut against the tears that threatened. She would never do such a thing, but the evidence would be stacked against her. He’d never believe otherwise.
And perhaps he’d be right.
She wouldn’t have done it on purpose, but if her father or brothers caught wind of anything between them, they wouldn’t hesitate to make him regret any attention he’d paid her.
James’s life. The future of the hotel. The safety of her friends. It was all in danger.
She could leave. Take a horse and ride as far as she could and then board a train to some new place. But if they found her here, they’d find her anywhere. There could always be another Mr. Adkins.
She couldn’t escape Edith Beaumont.
And it was time she accepted the only fate she had. She’d give her pa and cous
in and brothers what they wanted, and maybe they’d leave without causing any further harm.
She’d give them her future.
Chapter Twenty-three
The Crest Stone Mercantile and General Store was in worse shape than James had imagined. It was hard to find a place to step without crushing something underfoot.
Even more disturbing was Drexel’s recounting of what had happened the night before. It was eerily similar to what had happened to James on the ride back from the camp. Unfortunately, neither Drexel nor his wife had gotten a good look at the perpetrators. It was clearly the work of more than one man, but that was all James could piece together.
Frustrated, he left the building to search for any sort of clues the men might have left outside. There would be no tracks, not with the sheer number of men and horses that traversed the road that ran the length of the train tracks. There was nothing else out here that gave even a hint of who the men might be. More than anything, he wanted to form a posse and go after these men. But how could he if he didn’t know which family it was or where they’d gone? James clenched his hands. Irritation welled up inside him, threatening to burst.
He ran a fist into the wall, barely wincing at the pain that shot through his knuckles. He had to do something to prevent this from happening again, and he couldn’t do that alone.
Rubbing his fingers, he tried to steady his breathing as he looked around the town. His town. It didn’t matter that he hadn’t been here long, and no one here had elected him. He felt some sort of ownership over the peace of this place, and he couldn’t abide anyone stealing from its residents or harming them.
That old anger subsided some, and his mind chugged back into clear thought. Signs pointed toward the Beaumonts. Considering both he and Drexel had come out of their run-ins alive and relatively unhurt, and considering the horse thefts—the Beaumonts’ usual fallback—it didn’t have the signs of the louder, more violent work of the Fletchers.
He couldn’t be completely certain, of course, but at least it was a place to start. He’d call a meeting, get some men to stand guard at night. And then he’d telegraph Ben and ask him to send Harry or Eli. He could use the backup.
Spurred on by the plan, he stepped out into the road, only to be met by a group of women. He recognized several of their faces from the hotel. They all wore plain working dresses, and some of them carried rags and buckets and brooms. And there, at the rear of the group, he spotted Edie.
“Good morning, ladies.” He tugged the brim of his hat. “Might I ask where you’re off to?”
“The general store, Deputy,” Miss Barnett answered him. “Miss Dutton said the Drexels needed help cleaning up.”
He caught Edie’s eye. She gave him a slight, sad smile before turning away. He should’ve known. Edie had a heart of gold. “Then I wish you well.” He nodded at them and watched as they made their way to the store.
Edie lagged behind the group. When she glanced behind her, he took the few steps between them and took hold of her hand. She looked down at his fingers clasped around hers and gently tugged her hand away. “Please don’t,” she said, so low he could barely hear her.
Her words cut through everything that had made sense only a few minutes ago to a place that was raw and lonesome. He shouldn’t have done that, not after the way he’d left things between them last night. He shifted, letting his hand rest on the handle of his revolver, and attempted to look as if he had control of the situation. As if he had control of his heart.
“I think it’s the Beaumonts,” he said, his voice strained.
She nodded, and a flicker of emotion flashed across her face so quickly he couldn’t determine what it meant. “I thought as much too.”
There it was again. The indication that there was something in her past, something painful—just like what he carried with his uncle’s death. Only hers, it appeared, stemmed from something the Beaumonts had done. “What is it?” he asked.
When she didn’t answer, he pressed on. “I’ve seen it plain as day on your face, more than once. They’ve done something to you. Or to your family or someone you loved.”
She chewed on her lip and cast her eyes down to the hands clasped in front of her.
“I know how it feels. I know what that kind of pain can do.” If only she’d tell him, he might be able to help. Even though he knew—knew—he needed to keep his distance, he couldn’t let her hurt like that without at least trying to help. In fact, it cut him to the core to think that anyone had ever hurt Edie. And if she told him who it was, he’d ensure they’d regret it if he found them.
“I can’t say. Please, leave it be.” She raised her eyes to meet his.
He was torn between sympathy and irritation. He wanted both to scoop her into his arms and to shake some sense into her all at the same time. “Fine,” he said evenly.
“James.” Her voice trembled a little on his name. “It was good to meet you. You are more than I ever deserved.”
Her words were like a boulder to the gut. He shifted his stance, raising his eyes to look out past the edges of the town where the railroad tracks and telegraph wires disappeared into the distance, acting as if she hadn’t crushed any tiny shred of hope he might have remaining. It was good to meet you. Something about it sounded so final, as if she thought she’d never see him again. But it was the last sentence she’d spoken that made his heart ache. She was the most wonderful woman he’d ever met, and the thought of her thinking anything less than that of herself was more than he could bear.
Struggling not to convey his emotions with his voice, he finally spoke. “You deserve more than I can give.”
She dipped her head, and he couldn’t catch her reaction.
He nodded to the girls who waited outside the store for her. “You ought to join your friends.”
She turned to look behind her.
“Edie?”
Slowly, she glanced back at him.
“I promise you I’ll find them.” It would be a hard promise to keep, given how long the Beaumonts had evaded capture in Kansas. But he couldn’t let her go with whatever memories she carried haunting her forever. “Stay close to the hotel. Tell the other girls the same.”
“I will.”
And with that, she left. He watched her join her friends and enter the store, and not once did she look backward. He’d hurt her badly last night. So much so that she sensed his thoughts and put an end to it all for him today.
It was what needed to happen. He knew that, and yet he hated it. But what he’d said was true—she deserved far more than a man whose work came first. A man whose every thought and every movement required complete awareness of his surroundings.
It was better this way. Now he could find the Beaumonts, put an end to their terrorizing, and move forward with his own dream of being elected marshal.
Yet somehow, the moment Edie disappeared into the mercantile, his plans—the ones that had driven him from Kansas to Cañon City, the ones that had dictated the last several years of his life—felt hollow.
But it was all he had now. He adjusted his hat and strode toward the depot. He’d find the Beaumonts even if he drew his last breath in the process. It wouldn’t be just for him, it would be for the whole town. For the entire state of Kansas.
For Edie.
Chapter Twenty-four
Edie paused on the edge of town, feeling much the same as she had late last summer when she’d left home. She was on a borrowed horse in the dead of night, praying no one was awake to see her. The only difference now was that she carried food and water instead of money and clothing. And she had no need of a falsified letter of reference.
She gave Crest Stone one last glance before riding out into the night. She ached at the thought of leaving, but she knew this was her only choice. If all her family wanted was her return, they could leave immediately. And if they were hoping to use her to get to the hotel, well . . . she would talk them out of it. If it meant her friends would be safe and James wouldn’t ne
ed to put himself into danger, she would return home a thousand times.
It wasn’t the life she wanted, but it was the life fate had chosen for her.
Edie followed the tracks south of town for a while. She had a short list of places to search, the most likely places her Pa and Nick would’ve picked to hole up in. The old cabin south of Crest Stone was the easiest place to start, and, it seemed, the most likely choice. Abandoned and off quite a ways from the tracks, it was still an easy ride to Crest Stone. If they weren’t there, she’d move up into the mountains. She wouldn’t stop looking until she found them and put an end to the fear that now rippled through the town.
It didn’t take long to find the cabin, since she knew where it was situated. But as she rode up, she could tell it was empty. No light shone from the windows, no smoke curled from the chimney, and no horses stood in the corral outside the barn.
Edie paused by the barn and considered her options. There were several old fur traders’ cabins up in the mountains. They would be much harder to find; it might take her days to locate them. But she had no other choice, so she nudged the horse around the barn and headed toward where the mountains rose like the shadows of giants to the west.
She didn’t fear the dark or the wilderness—she’d spent plenty of time in both back in Kansas. What she did fear was the unknown. How would Pa react when she returned? Would he be angry or happy to see her? She tried to focus on what good might come out of this. She’d missed her mother and her brothers so much at times that it seemed her heart might break open. She would get to see them again.
