A Bride to Heal His Broken Heart

by Melynda Carlyle

  “We need to have a town meeting,” Tyler stated as Dr. Ellsworth finished bandaging up his son’s shoulder.

  “I believe that might be something we should look at if these occurrences continue.”

  Lorna kept her opinion to herself. Tyler and Jeremy left half an hour later, leaving Lorna once again with her thoughts and a small amount of cleanup. She continued to think about Tyler’s assessment that the town was in need of a new sheriff. She was inclined to agree.

  Since arriving in Virginia City, she’d witnessed outlaws racing their horses down the main street of town, shooting their weapons off haphazardly. They’d robbed the bank, killed one man, and now injured two others.

  This had all occurred in a short amount of time. Left unchecked, who knew to what lengths the outlaws might go. No one in the town would be safe then.

  Another patient came in for a persistent cough, and finally Dr. Ellsworth declared it was noon and that Lorna was free to leave for the day. Lorna picked up her reticule and then stepped out onto the boardwalk, shielding her eyes from the bright sunshine. She looked to her left but didn’t see Darren anywhere around.

  She turned her head to the right and paused as butterflies took flight in her stomach. There, coming toward her with his long-legged stride, was Darren. His hat was tipped up the tiniest bit, allowing her to see his eyes, which were fixed on her.

  She pressed a hand to her stomach as he drew nearer, and when he smiled at her, she felt her heart skip a beat. She didn’t know exactly what it was about Darren that affected her so, but she had agreed to spend more time with him this afternoon, and that thought made her smile. Just being near Darren made her feel all warm and tingly inside.

  Whatever was happening between them, she was more than willing to explore it further. She’d never felt this way about a man.

  She didn’t really know Darren – surely there was no way she could be in love with him. She hadn’t even been in love with his brother, Mark, she’d just been hopeful that after marrying him they would find enough common ground to build a solid marriage upon.

  These feelings she had whenever Darren was near were intense: hard to ignore and harder to explain. He continued walking toward her, and her mind flashed back to the festival and the way Darren had been ready to shoot the man with the scar over his eye. Suddenly, she was filled with dread for what Darren’s reaction would be when he learned of Jeremy’s injury.

  There was no doubt in her mind that the outlaws who killed Mark were the same ones who had shot Jeremy this morning. His father was confident that going to the sheriff would be pointless. Would Darren feel the same way?

  Chapter 19

  Darren found himself smiling as he headed for the doctor’s office and saw Lorna already standing outside waiting for him. He was surprised to find that he was looking forward to spending more time with her. But as he drew nearer, he saw the smile on her face fade and a look of concern enter her eyes.

  He quickly glanced sideways, but no source of danger lurked there. He looked back to her to see her eyes were now cast downward and her brow marred by a frown. He felt like he was missing something.

  “Ready to go?” he asked as he reached her side.

  Lorna nodded but still didn’t meet his eyes. “Yes. I’m ready.”

  Darren frowned down at her and asked, “What’s wrong?”

  She still wouldn’t look at him. He waited patiently, giving her plenty of time to share her concerns with him. She fidgeted for a moment before looking up into his eyes.

  “A father brought a young man in a short time ago. He’d been shot.”

  “Shot? Doing what?” Darren asked, looking at the doctor’s office before returning his gaze to hers.

  “He was trying to stop some rustlers from taking their cattle.”

  “Rustlers? Or outlaws?” Darren inquired softly, his anger starting to build again.

  “It sounded like it might be the same men…” she trailed off.

  “Who shot my brother?” When she nodded, he quietly asked, “Who was shot?”

  “Jeremy…”

  “Whitfield? His pa is Tyler.”

  “That’s him. It was just a flesh wound,” she hurried to tell him. “The bullet went by his shoulder and put a deep groove in the skin.”

  Darren felt his stomach twist itself into knots at this news. He’d just finished telling the sheriff that things were going to continue to escalate unless something was done about the outlaws. Jeremy was the third man to be shot in a week’s time. Enough was enough!

  “I just came from the sheriff’s office. He didn’t say anything about another shooting.”

  “He probably didn’t know yet. Tyler didn’t seem to think the sheriff would do anything anyway.”

  “Unfortunately, he’s probably right.” The need for revenge rekindled inside his chest and he felt his anger rise to dangerous proportions. “I don’t know if the man is scared to act or just too stubborn to admit he needs help, but I didn’t get the impression that he intends to do anything different than what he’s doing now.”

  “But,” Lorna said, shaking her head in consternation, “he’s not doing anything now.”

  “Precisely why I went to see the man. There were growing problems with the outlaws before Mark was shot. He’d been working with Sheriff Chisholm to come up with a new plan: a plan to catch the outlaws and put an end to their criminal activities.”

  “Did they ever get one put together? A plan?” Lorna asked.

  Darren sighed heavily and nodded. “Yes, they did.” When Lorna arched a delicate brow at his silence, he sighed again and continued speaking, “Mark was going to become the new sheriff, and Chisholm was going to step down.”

  “Mark wanted to be the sheriff?”

  “I don’t know if he actually wanted to be sheriff, but it was the plan he and Sheriff Chisholm settled upon.”

  “Why?”

  “I guess he thought that was the only way to accomplish the goal of getting rid of the outlaws. Mark seemed convinced that they were somehow connected to the arrival of the new railroad company in the area.

  “The owner of the railroad has been putting pressure on all of the landowners to sell their ranches and farmland if it’s in the path he wishes to build upon. He’s offering pennies for what the land is actually worth, and so far, no one’s really been interested in selling.”

  “Surely the railroad could find another route to build on,” Lorna suggested.

  “Not that we’ve seen. They first approached Pa, but he adamantly refused to sell any of our land. The Wilson ranch is prime ranchland, perfect for raising cattle and horses, and we have the largest holdings in the area. The offer Pa received was an insult, but Pa was as nice as he could be about declining it. The other townsfolk have followed his lead and are refusing to sell as well.”

  “So, Mark was against the railroad as well?”

  “He was. He was getting all of the landowners together to take a stand against the new railroad. Many of them, including Mark, didn’t even want the first railroad coming to Virginia City. They certainly didn’t want a second rail line coming through town.”

  Lorna nodded, and Darren found himself looking into her eyes, seeing the calm and peace that existed there and feeling a small measure of it seep into his own soul.

  When she reached for his hand, he was startled, but only for a moment. He looked down to see her entwining her fingers with his own, and when he looked up and met her eyes, an overwhelming sense of peace and calm washed over him like a waterfall.

  It was amazing, considering the anger that had just been burning so brightly inside of him. When she spoke, he knew exactly where the peace had come from.

  “Darren, we must pray to God that he will bring peace to this town. Our faith shouldn’t rest on the shoulders of a mere man, but our faith should be in God and God alone.”

  Darren nodded. “You’re right. I guess I just lost my way for a moment.”

  “It’s easy to do when
we can see what needs to be done and no one is doing it. Shall we focus on something else for a while? Your mother’s wreath?”

  “Of course,” Darren shook himself and then led Lorna across the street and toward the church. There was a small graveyard behind and to the side of the building. Small crosses and various other markers rose from the ground, marking the last resting place of loved ones young and old.

  A box sat at the bottom of the church steps. Inside were a variety of wreaths that had been placed there for use on the grave markers. They were mostly twisted vines and stems, some with leaves still attached, and even the remnants of fruit that had once grown upon them.

  Darren selected a small one made from a woody plant, the leaves dry and crumbly in his hand. He then led Lorna to the small, whitewashed picket fence. He held open the small gate and led her toward a large white cross in the rear corner of the graveyard. Along the way they passed many similar grave markers, each bearing the name of someone who had once lived in Virginia City.

  They came to the last grave marker and stopped. There was an inscription burned into the wood that read Virginia Wilson, Beloved Wife and Mother and the dates of her birth and death. Darren reverently placed the wreath over the head of the cross and then stood with his hands folded and his eyes closed for a long moment.

  He could sense Lorna standing slightly behind him, giving him plenty of space, and he was once again reminded of her compassionate and understanding nature. He extended his hand, and moments later she placed her smaller one in it.

  He spoke softly and told her, “I think you would have liked her. She was full of life and her smile could make the darkest, stormiest day seem bright and sunny.”

  “You loved her,” Lorna added.

  “I did. As much, maybe even more so, than the woman who gave life to me. Virginia Wilson showed me what a mother’s love felt like.”

  Darren bowed his head again, observing a moment of silent remembrance for the woman he still missed to this very day. The ranch had continued on, but nothing had ever been the same since her death.

  When a bird called from overhead, he looked up and sighed. “Thank you for coming here with me.”

  “No thanks are necessary. I wish there was a gravesite for my father that I could visit. So many men were killed, and the army continually moved on – it just wasn’t possible to take the bodies back to their hometowns and bury them.”

  “I’m sorry. That must have been very hard.”

  “It was. It still is, but I realized I didn’t have to visit a grave to remember our time together, short as it was.”

  “That’s a good way of looking at things.” Darren led her back out of the graveyard and then stopped and picked up another wreath. “For Mark’s grave.”

  Lorna nodded and joined him as they slowly rounded to the front of the church. Several people were coming to the graveyard to also lay wreaths on their loved ones’ graves. Darren nodded politely at all of them but kept moving.

  Visiting his mother’s grave had been more emotional this time for some reason. Maybe it was because Mark’s death was so fresh in his memory. He didn’t want to dwell too long on that fact, but he was doubly glad that Lorna had consented to join him. Her presence had made this visit so much easier to bear. He glanced down into her eyes and gave her a small smile. “Thank you, again.”

  Lorna nodded and returned his smile. “You are most welcome.”

  “Shall we get something to eat before heading back to the ranch? Breakfast seems like it was a long time ago.”

  Lorna smiled and nodded. “That sounds like a wonderful idea.”

  “Then we’ll eat before heading home.” He didn’t even think twice about referring to the ranch as Lorna’s home. He might have been a little standoffish about her remaining on the ranch when she first arrived, but now it seemed as if she belonged there. He wanted to keep it that way.

  Chapter 20

  As they rounded the side of the church, Lorna found herself coming face-to-face with Sofia, who immediately hugged her tightly. “Oh, Lorna. I’m so glad I ran into you. I can’t thank you enough for what you did for my boy.”

  “It was nothing,” Lorna assured her, embarrassed by the woman’s effusive praise that was drawing the attention of other passersby. “I’m just glad God saw fit to provide me with the experience and knowledge to help young Timothy. I hope he is recovering well.”

  “He is. In fact, won’t you join us for dinner this evening? Both of you?” Sofia asked, her gaze moving back and forth between Darren and Lorna.

  Darren cleared his throat and then looked at Lorna. “We were just going to find some dinner before heading back to the ranch.”

  Lorna nodded and then smiled. “We’d be pleased to join you for dinner.”

  Sofia beamed at them and hooked her arm in the crook of Lorna’s elbow. “Wonderful. So, were you laying wreaths on the gravesites?”

  “Yes,” Lorna murmured. “His mother’s.”

  “That’s a nice gesture.” The woman continued to chatter away and Lorna did her best to try and keep up with the conversation, but for the most part, Sofia didn’t actually require any response from Lorna aside from a nod of her head once in a while.

  As they walked along the boardwalk toward the pastor’s home, Lorna felt as if someone was watching her. She lifted her head and quickly scanned the area, her eyes coming to rest on the same man Darren had almost fought with at the festival. He was standing partly in and partly out of the mayor’s office, and he was staring straight at her.

  A shiver ran up her spine at the malice she felt coming from the man. She was tempted to point him out to Darren, but the fear that another altercation might ensue kept her from saying anything.

  Lorna believed they’d been lucky during their last encounter, and she hated to put Darren in a position where he might feel compelled to fight the other man. She was hopeful that in such a circumstance Darren would prove to be the victor; she just didn’t feel this was the appropriate time to put that to the test.

  She held her tongue, but the fact that the man had been leaving the mayor’s office didn’t sit well with her. The man was obviously an outlaw, based upon what Darren had told her, and yet he was consorting with the town’s top official. That seemed very off in her mind.

  Afraid that Darren might pick up on her concern, she forced her thoughts to more pleasant things. She’d had more than her fair share of upsets in the two weeks since her arrival in Virginia City, Nevada.

  “Here we are. Please, come inside and make yourselves comfortable. I’ll tell Eric that we have company.” Sofia smiled and then nodded before disappearing down a hallway.

  Moments later, Pastor Johnson came into the room and Sofia announced that it was time to eat. Lorna preceded Darren into the other room and sat down in the chair he held out for her, smiling as everyone else joined them.

  She’d become accustomed to having more than just herself at the table these last two weeks. She watched as the pastor’s children joined them. They quietly took their seats and folded their hands as they waited for grace to be said over the meal.

  Lorna was immediately reminded of how alone she’d been back in Nova Scotia before coming West. With no family to speak of, she’d spent much of her time alone. In the few months before leaving to become a nurse on the front lines, she’d had little time for making friends.

  The tempo of the war and the horrific injuries the nurses saw kept them from socializing during their resting hours. Lorna had gotten used to being alone, left with only her own thoughts as a companion. She’d never truly appreciated how nice having others around was, until this moment.

  “Miss Lorna?” Timothy’s soft voice drew her attention.

  “Yes, Timothy? I’m glad to see you’re feeling much better.”

  “Thanks to you. You should become a doctor,” he told her, youthful admiration beaming from his eyes.

  Lorna felt her cheeks flush at the suggestion, and she shook her head. It was unhea
rd of for a woman to aspire to such heights; they were to be nurses and such, but not doctors.

  “Miss MacPherson, where did you acquire your nursing skills?” Pastor Johnson asked into the awkward silence.

  Lorna met his eyes and then looked at the others seated around the table. She was hesitant to mention the war, not knowing which side of the battle those in attendance had been on.

  “I was a nurse during the Civil War.” Hearing her voice waver, she swallowed audibly and tried to force more strength into it. “I mainly worked with wounded soldiers, helping them recover from their injuries.”

  Her hands were in her lap and she wiped her left palm nervously on the fabric of her skirt. Darren said nothing, but suddenly his fingers were there, turning hers around so that their hands were palm to palm. He squeezed hers softly in a show of support. Lorna did her best to keep her eyes straight forward, giving no outward sign of emotion to those watching. Darren released her hand seconds later, but she felt buoyed by his silent show of support and finished dinner without any further worries.