by Annie Boone
Mr. Jessup started pacing again. “How did you know about this? And about this deal with Mr. Parker?”
She shrugged. “Theodore wasn’t a quiet man, no matter what he thought. And he complained enough about me using the family’s money. I offered to leave once, but they knew how bad it would look on them. And everyone knew Mr. Parker, a cruel business man who traveled often, but I… well, I worked for the town’s doctor, Dr. Hadley, you see, and I heard the stories. I knew the nasty things he did to people who crossed him.” Shuddering at the memories, Olivia wiped away the tears and wondered how it had come to this. “Please, I’m not lying. I know I didn’t share everything upfront, but I promise, this is everything I know. I thought it was over and I didn’t want to worry anyone, I didn’t want to be a bother. I just wanted to start over.”
“I believe you,” Mr. Jessup assured her. “However, this is a legal matter that must still be addressed. The fact that I have not put you behind bars means that I am not doing the duty I have sworn to the people of Rocky Ridge that I promised to do. So,” he offered her a tight smile, “I’m going to investigate this issue, and we’re going to hide you away.”
Her eyes widened. “Hide me? Whatever do you mean?”
After another minute of pacing, Lucas had it all figured out. Opening the desk, he pulled out a few dollar bills, and hurried her out of the station. “There’s no time to pack, I’m afraid,” he murmured in her ear as they headed down the street. “I’ll have to tell Susannah. She’s going to kill me. Fix your bonnet, put it over your eyes, will you?” She hurriedly obeyed. “Good. You’re going on the stagecoach, and you get off at the next one. That’ll be Berryville. Find a hotel to stay in, and keep your head down.”
“I’m doing the best I can.” She nodded and dipped her head further.
“I mean by not talking to people or going out or attracting attention. I can’t make any promises, however, Olivia. You can stay there, or you can keep moving on. Once I get this taken care of, I can come there for you. Susannah and I won’t begrudge you if you decide to keep moving on. You can write to us in a few months, and we can send you your things, if you like.”
They had reached the stagecoach station. “What do you mean?” Olivia’s heart thudded, staring at him.
Lucas sighed. “It means you can go anywhere and do anything. But right now, you just can’t be here.”
As she left town, riding away in the carriage, his words echoed in her mind. Her heart hammered and she tried to imagine leaving Rocky Ridge forever. And leaving Simon. She took a shaky breath and drew her cloak around her tighter, but kept her eyes wide open.
Chapter Fourteen
The cart wasn’t that steady, with a wheel that wasn’t well balanced. This made the cart tilt and it jolted every time they hit a small rut or rock in the road. Simon winced at a particularly rickety spot, and hurriedly glanced at the bundled up woman beside him. With one hand, she was holding onto the bench to stay upright, the other hand holding onto her blankets.
“Mrs. Jessup?” He cut his eyes over to her and then quickly back on the road in front of them.
She shook her head. “I’m fine, really, Simon. The air is doing me well. Don’t you worry about me.” Susannah smiled and reached out to touch his arm. “And you’re doing me some good, as well. Honestly, it’s just a cold.” It was as though she sneezed just for effect.
Nodding, he decided to focus on the road then, unsure of what else to do with her. She had shown herself in the past to be a rather formidable woman in leading their dialogue and clearing the air between people. Now, he was mostly worried about getting in trouble with her husband for letting her join him in town. Shrugging it off, he tried to focus on his plans. On the other hand, perhaps Lucas would be able to talk some sense into her.
The two of them reached town soon enough, and they had errands to run. She was to go find Olivia and keep her from finding Simon shopping for the ring and the flowers and everything else. Simon started his errands by helping her off the wagon. “Can I be of any assistance? I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
Shaking her head, she grinned and fixed her hat. “What did I tell you? I’ll be fine. I’m going to retrace Olivia’s steps to find her. She should be at the haberdashery or the mercantile, I suppose, so I’ll start there. And then I’ll visit my husband at his office.
“You’re welcome to either return the cart later today, or tomorrow if you get held up,” she continued with a pointed gaze. “Now I want to make sure you get everything taken care of, do you understand? If you need anything, come find me or Lucas. Otherwise, we expect to see you at our house early Friday evening. Understood?”
Even if Lucas Jessup was sheriff, Simon doubted that even he could object under such a look as the one that Susannah gave him now. It was enough to send a man to the grave if he wasn’t ready to obey. But he nodded, still wholeheartedly invested, and straightened with a grin. “I’ll be there as soon as I can manage, ma’am.”
“Good,” she beamed, and bustled off with a sniffle.
Simon watched her wander off down the street, making sure she was all right. No one bothered her, but most people waved their greetings to her as she reached the haberdashery and entered, still upright with her head on straight. With a sigh of relief, he turned down the other direction of the street.
His first step was to Mr. Connelly’s, an old friend of Frank Dane. Lillian and Frank had mentioned him before, in his consideration of settling here for good. Mr. Connelly was old in age, a loner who liked a good poker hand and constantly talked about getting enough money together to go to California. The one thing he always told everyone he had too much of, was land. One of the first folks in Rocky Ridge, the man had laid several claims to nearly half the town that he had been selling little by little over the years. Everyone knew it, and everyone went to him for property options.
Mr. Connelly grinned and wiped his face as he answered the door. “Mr. James! I had been wondering when I would have you come around. Do come in. Are you hungry?”
Confused at his words for having met the man for the first time, Simon slowly stepped in, pulling his hat off. “No, I’m very well, but thank you. What do you mean, you’ve been wondering?” Glancing around at the small house, suddenly he was wondering himself if he had come to the wrong place or if something was going on that he just didn’t know about.
He followed the man to the kitchen where the man went back to eating greasy chicken thighs. It was a disgusting sight to watch, the liquid dripping from his fingers. Mr. Connelly looked rather a mess, but he looked satisfied and full. “Your family has mentioned you might be coming around in the next few months. Mr. Dane had me section off a nice parcel of land, just in case.”
Pausing, Simon started at him, speechless. He had thought it would be a lot more difficult than this. A few folks had once mentioned that they had had to argue and defend their needs for the land, to claim the land from him and why they needed it more than he did. The entire wagon ride into town, he had been working up his own need for the claim and preparing his argument. Now, the jumble of words filled his mind in a bushel and it was as though Connelly had just lit them on fire.
“Oh,” he managed. He shook his head, trying to clear it, and attempted to something else to say. Had Frank told him? He couldn’t recall hearing of such a thing before, and he didn’t know what to say. “Well then, that’s great. I thought it might be more difficult than this.”
Connelly gave off a booming laugh that made the table shake. Wiping his hands on his pants, the man stood. “Let me get the map and we can talk prices, shall we?” The man hummed a merry tune as he dug through his small desk and finally pulled out a hand drawn map. “I made this myself when I first arrived, you know. I was young then, much younger than you are now. And it’s still the most accurate map of the county.”
“Impressive,” Simon murmured as it was spread out on the table. Chicken was set aside for the moment as the two men glanced down at the ex
pansive map. He had colored the ridges as well, using dull paints that highlighted the script. Some things had been scratched out and written over, as time made its effect. But as he said, everything appeared in order.
Connelly nodded, and after glancing around for a few moments, he pointed out one section of land, one that had already received a second outline. “Here we are! This is what he thought you might want. A spot close to the ranch and to town, but particularly the train lines. The plot next to them was already taken, but this is the next best option.”
Going over his calculations, it looked as though he would have close to ten acres. His family’s farm had been twenty, but that’s not what he wanted. He did fine on the farm but that wasn’t his livelihood. Simon just wanted a little something that would be cozy enough for his family, and comfortable enough through the seasons. Mr. Connelly had mentioned that it had already been checked out for him, handpicked, so Simon knew this would be a good spot. A house, a few animals, a garden, and just a place he could call home again.
“Perfect,” Simon grinned at him. “That’ll do.”
They spent the next hour haggling on prices. Within a minute, he could tell that Mr. Connelly didn’t really care about exactly how much money he received, seeing as he would still get some in the end, but it was the art of bargaining that he enjoyed. The men dragged it out until they found something that worked well for both parties. They drew up an agreement that they both signed.
Afterwards, Simon dropped off a copy of the legal sale at the judge’s office, and then headed off towards the edge of the town, where a lumberyard was just getting situated in the area. Because if he was going to have a spot of land, then he would need a house made of good timber. Nodding to familiar faces as he went, the young man started on his errands of preparing his future. There was lumber, tools, handy work, and more that he had to set up for.
The sun was setting by the time he completed his errands. Finishing them by purchasing a big bouquet of flowers, Simon considered heading over there that evening to propose to Olivia. Would it upset Susannah, to do it too soon? It felt like forever since he had seen her, even though it had only been a few days. Looking at the sunset, he wanted to go over there and see his girl immediately. But something told him it was still too late, and he was too tired as it was.
“Friday,” he took a deep breath, and grinned as he saw the first star of the night come out. “Next week, then.”
Chapter Fifteen
After checking the haberdashery and the general store, Susannah retraced her steps and asked the shop owners about Olivia. Each one of the folks she spoke with had confirmed that Olivia had been in and made her purchases. They’d also noted that everything seemed well in order when they spoke with her.
Stepping out of the general store, she looked around anxiously. Her boot tapped against the ground over and over, the only outward sign that she wasn’t all right. Well, besides the thick coat and two scarves. She tugged on the top one, groaning as it hampered her view and movement. Her body temperature varied from cold to hot and it was driving her mad.
“Where could she be?” She murmured to herself. What could have taken her off task? Why, even the cart was still there with the horse and their items. Shuffling down the steps, she went to Lemondrop and patted his nose. “Did you see where she went? Hmm?”
She glanced around at the various stores, wondering if she might have wandered into one of them. Olivia always had so much on her mind, but usually she didn’t stray from her path. Susannah knew there was only one way to find out, however, so she started off. Sniffling and pulling her coat tight for warmth, she headed into each of the buildings one by one.
And one by one, they couldn’t help her. Half of them didn’t know who she was, and the others only knew her from a few occasions at church. By the time Susannah had made it halfway around the block, she was tired and sweaty and her nerves were at their end.
Inhaling deeply, she looked around wildly and found herself near the cells. Her heart skipped a beat. Lucas! He’d be able to help. Trying not to shiver from the cold, Susannah bustled her way over to the office. Strength zapped, the wind made her teary-eyed and she could hardly see as she entered the room.
Turning to the desk, she squinted and instantly recognized her husband hunched over the desk. “Lucas!” She gasped, and hurried over. “Lucas! There you are. I’ve been looking all over. You need to help me—”
He caught her from turning towards the door, grabbing her shoulders. Towering over her, Lucas wiped the tears on her face and she could see his concerned frown. “Susie? What are you doing here in town? Sit down. How did you get here?” And he lifted her off her feet into his chair before she knew what was happening.
If anything, it only made her dizzy. Or dizzier, she wasn’t certain. Clutching Lucas with one hand, she blinked several times and waited for the world to slow down to a crawl. She was fairly certain she’d stopped moving, but her head hadn’t make up its mind. “Oh.”
“You’re sick, Susannah, how did you even get here? You’re warm. Too warm.” His hands brushed against her cheeks. Wiping his hands on his pants, he glanced around and picked up his scarf, returning to wrap it firmly around her.
Her wide gaze narrowed at him as it covered everything below her eyelashes. No sensible person wore three scarves, no matter how cold it was. She huffed and then sneezed hard several times. “Please, Lucas. Settle down. I needed to come to you. I’ve been here for hours, I swear, and I don’t know what else to do. I’ve tried everything, and I’ve looked everywhere.”
“But you have everything you need, don’t you?” Lucas rubbed her shaking hands. “Where did your mittens go?”
The room was brightly lit and it was still midday, but everything was in a fog for Susannah. Now that she was actually sitting down, her body made a point of reminding her how tired and achy she really was. Groaning, she could feel her bones giving up their strength and she slouched in the seat, grateful for the warmth Lucas was helping return to her bones. But he’d asked her a question.
Her mittens. “My mittens, I lost my mittens! The mittens, oh.” He raised an eyebrow and reached into her pocket and pulled them out. Inhaling sharply, her muddled mind told her all was well, until she recalled why she was here. “Wait!” Scrambling up, Susannah tried to pull him towards the door. “We need to find her.”
“Her?”
She nodded, wondering why he wasn’t budging. “Yes, that’s right. Olivia! She came to town with you and she did the things she came to do. I mean, she took care of the errands. Olivia bought what we needed. It’s all in the cart!”
“Oh, right.” He turned towards the door and away from Susannah.
She ran forward, stumbling over her long coat, and opened the door. Her bones trembled, and she could feel the tingle at the back of her neck that she couldn’t ignore.
“I can’t find her anywhere, Lucas, anywhere. She’s gone! Olivia did everything, but I can’t find her.” Susannah turned back to her husband, hoping he understood exactly what she was saying. The severity of the situation, she tried not to think about anything terrible that might have happened. Shaking her head, she tried to convince herself if they would just look again, she would be there. Susannah was certain of it. And the more she talked, the louder her voice grew. “She’s just gone, Lucas. Without a word. I don’t know what to do, but we have to find her.”
That’s when her husband went over to her, again, but he didn’t lead her out the door. Instead, Lucas wrapped his thick arms around her, and she found herself pressed against his chest. “You’re shivering, and you’re upset, Susie.” He stated this as a fact. “You need to take a deep breath, please.”
“But—” She couldn’t help but obey and gasp for breath. “But I don’t know where she went.”
“Shh, darling,” he murmured, carefully leading her back to the room. They sat on his desk as she collected herself. Now that she had a moment to compose herself, she realized she’d been near hys
terics and he had good reason for making sure she collected her emotions before going out in public.
Swallowing, Susannah took another deep breath, and then nodded. She couldn’t expect to be of any use if she wasn’t collected. “Thank you. But Lucas, we can’t sit here all day. Please, I’m worried about Olivia. I don’t know where she is. We must find her.”
“Neither do I,” he paused, looking away. “But I know where I sent her.”
“Sent her?” Jerking away, she stared at him. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
He pulled her closer before Susannah had a chance to turn away, but she froze at the sound of his heavy sigh. It wasn’t just a tired one, it was the one he made when it came to his job. She heard it in the mornings before addressing a hard case in court and in the evenings after a hard day. But what did it have to do with Olivia?
Out of his back pocket, Lucas brought out a crumpled piece of paper. “I received a packet of these to hang around town. Understand, Susannah, that I have no choice when it comes to something like this.”
Sniffling, she stared at the sketch and tried to understand the words written below. Surely the fever had taken its toll on her. It seemed incomprehensible, even as he started to explain what was going on, in the best terms that he could explain it to her. But even Lucas lacked the finer details.
“But this is madness,” she shook her head, turning up to him. Trying to clear her mind, Susannah took a deep breath. “Her first letter, I should have known it was more serious, but I never would have believed she was hiding something like this. She couldn’t hurt anyone, Lucas, I know it.”
“I know,” he reminded her. “I know. We just need to give it some time. We’ll sort this out. I’ve already sent out telegrams and letters to everyone I know.”
