Justin's Bride

by Susan Mallery

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  At the loud crash, almost everyone in the store turned. Megan calmly finished counting the pattern books before drawing in a deep breath and looking behind her toward the most recent disaster.

  A large glass jar of buttons had tipped over. The jar was intact, but several pounds of buttons had scattered over the counter and onto the floor. Bonnie stood in the center of the mess, biting her lower lip. However, the real culprit was halfway across the room, sitting on the jewelry display case and frantically licking her fur as if to reassure herself everything was fine.

  Bonnie looked at her. “Alice got caught.”

  “I can see that.” It was amazing what sort of damage a six-pound kitten could do in a general store, Megan thought.

  “That cat is a menace,” Mrs. Dobson said, coming up behind her and staring at the mess.

  “I know. However, Bonnie has really missed Justin since he’s been gone. Alice makes her feel better. I can’t tell her she mustn’t bring the cat with us. Can you?” She stared down at the widow.

  Mrs. Dobson sighed. “The child does dote on Justin. We’ll survive this, I suppose. But please keep that cat out of my stamps.” She shuddered. “I can just see her getting them stuck all over her fur.”

  Megan laughed.

  “It’s not funny.”

  Megan stifled her humor. “I suppose not.” She walked over to Alice and picked her up. Wide green eyes gazed back innocently. “Stop getting into everything.”

  Alice snuggled into Megan’s arms and started to purr. Megan shook her head. To be honest, she liked having the mischievous cat underfoot. It helped pass the long hours. Like Bonnie, she, too, missed Justin. He’d only been gone four days, but it felt like a month. Probably because they hadn’t spoken before he’d left that morning.

  “I’m sorry, Megan.” Bonnie puffed out her lower lip. “I’ll clean it all up myself.”

  “That’s a big job. It’s probably going to take all afternoon.”

  Bonnie nodded, dejected. “Am I gonna get a whippin’?”

  Megan’s chest tightened. The girl always asked the same question when she got into trouble. Megan wished she could go out to Mrs. Jarvis’s farm and give the woman a good whipping of her own. How dare she treat this little girl so badly? And Bonnie’s mother, Laurie, should have known what was happening to her own child.

  Megan set Alice on the counter by the spilled buttons, then touched Bonnie’s face. It wasn’t fair to judge Laurie. Megan didn’t know much about the young woman, but from all Bonnie had said, Laurie had loved her daughter. Perhaps she’d done the best she could.

  “No whipping,” Megan told her. “Remember, I promised you that a long time ago. I’ll never hit you, Bonnie. You’re going to be punished if you do something bad, but you don’t have to worry about being hurt or scared again.”

  Tears filled Bonnie’s big eyes and spilled onto her cheeks. She flung herself at Megan and wrapped her thin arms around Megan’s thighs. “We’re sorry, aren’t we, Alice? We didn’t mean to make a mess.”

  “I know, honey.” Megan knelt down and gathered the girl to her. “It’s all right. I understand you and Alice were just playing.”

  Sobs shook the girl’s body. “You’re not gonna leave, too, are you? If I promise never to be bad, will you please stay with me?”

  Was that what this was about? Megan pulled Bonnie’s arms from around her neck and set the girl away from her. Bonnie’s nose and eyes were red and her mouth puffy from crying. “Is that what you think? That Justin has left you?”

  Bonnie nodded. “You said he’d come back, but he didn’t.”

  “Oh, Bonnie, I’m so sorry. Justin came back that night, but then he left before you got up. He hasn’t left you forever. Just for a few days. He’ll be back. I promise.”

  Bonnie sniffed. Megan could see the child wanted to believe, but was afraid to.

  “What’s all this nonsense about Justin leaving you behind?” Mrs. Dobson asked, coming over to stand next to them. “Bonnie, you’re a smart girl. You just think about Justin and how he’s taken care of you. Would he go to all that trouble if he was just going to leave you behind?”

  “N-no.”

  “Well, then. He’s a fine father and you should be grateful to have him. Imagine how hurt he would be to find out you didn’t believe in him.”

  Mrs. Dobson was speaking to the girl, but Megan wondered if the older woman could see into her soul. Imagine how hurt Justin had been when she, Megan, hadn’t believed in him. She closed her eyes briefly.

  “He’s really coming back?” Bonnie asked softly.

  Mrs. Dobson smiled. “Justin will never leave you, child. He loves you.”

  How simple, Megan thought, wishing the same logic applied to her situation. She knew Justin loved her, but he didn’t trust her. Still, she’d made up her mind to prove her feelings to him, somehow. Hopefully, a plan would occur to her before he came back. If not, then she’d think of something before his year was up. She had that long.

  “I made a cake last night,” Mrs. Dobson was saying. She held out her hand. “Why don’t you come with me to my desk and we’ll share some. Then we can get started picking up these buttons.” She glanced at Megan. “Is that all right?”

  “Fine.” Megan stood up and brushed off the front of her dress. “Are you feeling better?” she asked Bonnie.

  The little girl smiled and nodded, then took the older woman’s hand and skipped over to the front of the store.

  Megan stared at the scattered buttons. She went into the back room and collected several tins. This was as good a time as any to get the buttons all sorted. At least it would keep Bonnie busy. Alice would have fun, as well, chasing shadows and generally making a pest of herself.

  When she walked back into the store, Bonnie was already laughing with Mrs. Dobson. Megan smiled. The older woman had grown to care about the girl. So far, Justin hadn’t been able to find out anything about Bonnie’s family. He’d mentioned that if nothing turned up, he would speak with the circuit judge on his next visit and discuss adopting Bonnie. Megan set the tins on the counter. Perhaps by then they would be the real family that the little girl wanted and they could adopt her together. She touched her stomach. Perhaps by then she would already be carrying Justin’s child. She hadn’t figured out exactly how she was going to prove herself to him, but one thing was for sure, she was going to do her best to stay in his bed.

  Oh, but it was difficult to keep hoping for the best when she didn’t have any idea how to convince him she cared. She’d spent the last four days coming up with plans, only to abandon them. Everything she’d considered had sounded foolish or impossible.

  The front door opened and Colleen strolled in. She was dressed in a blue gown with lace insets in the sleeves and over the collar. It was beautiful, and expensive, ordered all the way from New York. Clothing from St. Louis wasn’t good enough for Colleen. The fact that the dress was completely inappropriate for Landing would never occur to her sister, but Megan figured she wasn’t the one to point it out. After all, she had a Worth gown sitting in the armoire in her bedroom.

  Megan smiled. Colleen could be difficult at times, but there was no denying they had some things in common. A love of expensive, inappropriate clothes was one of them.

  Colleen saw her and walked down the center of the store to meet her. Other conversations in the store stopped as people turned to stare at them. Megan grimaced. No doubt, everyone had heard about their argument after the meeting last week. She held her ground and waited.

  Colleen stopped in front of her. She glanced at the spilled buttons. “Was there an accident?”

  “No, I was taking inventory.”

  Colleen’s thin eyebrows drew together as if she wasn’t sure if she was being mocked or not. “Gene and I have realized we must trust our faith to keep us safe from the devil.”

  Megan blinked several times, not sure what that meant. “I’m so pleased for you,” she said at last.
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br />   “Yes, well, with that in mind, we would like to have you and your, um, family, over for supper.” Colleen pulled a lace-edged handkerchief out of her reticule and sniffed it delicately.

  “I’m overwhelmed by your gracious invitation,” Megan muttered.

  “You told me I must accept your husband and that...” She paused. “I must accept Justin and Bonnie if you and I are to continue to be sisters. Despite what you think of me, I do have your best welfare at heart. I don’t agree with what you’ve done. However, I am willing to make the first step.”

  It was a big gesture for Colleen, Megan reminded herself. After all, her sister wasn’t known for her generosity. She thought about refusing and severing the relationship completely, but she didn’t want to. The momentary satisfaction would quickly give way to regret. Whatever Colleen had said or done, they were the only family each had left.

  “I was thinking of tomorrow night,” Colleen said. “About five-thirty. Is that convenient?”

  “We can’t. Justin’s away for a few days. He’s gone to neighboring towns to see if the same kinds of murders have happened there.”

  “A waste of time, if you ask me.”

  Megan drew in a deep breath and reminded herself Colleen had made the first move toward a reconciliation. She had to be willing to take that same step herself. “It’s not a waste of time. You should be pleased he takes his duties so seriously.”

  “I think he takes this seriously because his mother was as much a prostitute as that dead girl. Good riddance. Have you thought of what he’ll be doing while he’s gone? Perhaps he’ll need to question some of those women as part of his investigation.” She said the word as if it were dirty. “Don’t forget, Justin admitted he knew that whore seven years ago. Knew her intimately. I would be quite concerned if I were you.” Colleen shook her head. “You’re already having second thoughts, aren’t you? You should have listened to me. I could have told you—”

  “Stop it,” Megan ordered, her voice low and angry. “Stop it right now! I should have known better. But no, you’ve tricked me again.” She glared at Colleen. “Why am I so willing to believe the best of you when you forever show me how wrong I am?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m simply pointing out the obvious. Your husband—”

  “Is none of your concern,” Megan interrupted. She placed her hands flat on the counter between them and leaned forward. “I’m only going to say this one time. So listen to me very carefully. If I hear of you saying one bad thing about Justin or Bonnie, anything, even the fact that you don’t like the dress she has on or how he combs his hair, I’ll never speak to you again as long as I live. I’m tired of watching you bully people in this town, and I’m especially tired of watching you bully me.”

  Colleen flinched, but Megan wasn’t finished yet. “You constantly talk about your pious ways and your husband’s position as minister, but you make a mockery of true Christian spirit and godliness.”

  “Don’t you dare speak to me that way.”

  Megan leaned closer, until less than a foot separated them. “Don’t you dare threaten me. I won’t listen anymore. I’m not afraid of you or anyone. I don’t care what you think. The only person whose opinion matters to me is Justin’s.”

  “You’re at least one step up from a whore, Megan. I’m sure he thinks you’re perfect.”

  Megan narrowed her gaze. “You’re pushing me too far, Colleen,” she said quietly. “I don’t need your business here. You and Gene never pay your bill, anyway. But you’ll have a lot of time to think about that when you have to go all the way to the next town for supplies. As for my being perfect...” She drew in a deep breath and let it out with a laugh. “If only you knew the truth. You’re right. One of us isn’t worthy of the other, but I’m the one at fault. I’m the one whose reach exceeds her grasp with Justin. He deserves so much more, but he’s stuck with me, because I love him and I’m not going to let him go.”

  Colleen blanched the color of her handkerchief. For a second, Megan thought her sister was going to faint, but she managed to clutch the counter in time and catch her breath. “Don’t say that.”

  “Why not? It’s true. I loved him before he left seven years ago, and I still love him. My only regret is that we’ve lost all those years together. We could have already had a family together.”

  “You’re mad.”

  “Probably,” Megan agreed, surprised at how relieved she felt to tell someone her real feelings.

  “I don’t know what to say.” Colleen turned away and started for the door. When she opened it, she looked back. “I’ll speak to Gene. We’ll pray for you.”

  “Do that,” Megan called as her sister left. When the door closed, she looked around the store and saw everyone was staring at her. She met each of their gazes, keeping her head high and her shoulders back. She had nothing to be ashamed of.

  Bonnie put down her cake and ran across the store. When she reached Megan, she looked up and grinned. “I’m glad you love Justin. Now we can be a real family together.”

  Megan picked up the girl and held her close. “I’m going to do my best to make that happen, honey. I’m going to do my best.”

  * * *

  Megan wasn’t sure what she’d heard when she first woke up. She had the vague memory of a thud, as if something had hit the side of the house. Or as if someone had closed a door.

  She sat up in bed. Had Justin returned? He’d said a few days. She didn’t know exactly how long that was, but yesterday had been day four.

  She swung her feet over the side of the bed and grabbed for her robe. It wasn’t the silky sheer confection she’d worn to his room, although this robe wasn’t something her dear sister would approve of, either. It was soft blue satin and edged in black lace. She drew it over her shoulders and fumbled for the matching slippers. By the time she crossed the room, she’d already fastened the tie around her waist.

  She pulled open the door and peered down the stairs. “Justin? Is that you?” She kept her voice low, not wanting to awaken Bonnie. No sense in disappointing the girl if what Megan had heard was just the wind.

  Silence answered her call. She waited, then spoke again. “Justin?”

  Nothing. Megan took a single step down, then stopped and listened. There was a slight scratching sound. No, that wasn’t exactly what it was. She tilted her head to try to figure out where the noise was coming from. From behind her, maybe? From one of the other bedrooms.

  She turned slowly and looked down the hallway. All the doors were closed. For the first time since awakening, she felt a shiver of apprehension. Was a stranger in the house? The hairs on the back of her neck stood up.

  Before she could decide whether to investigate or just grab Bonnie and run outside with her, she heard a loud thump followed by a scream.

  “Megan!”

  She raced down the long hallway and flung open Bonnie’s door. Her gaze raked across the room to the empty bed. “Bonnie!”

  The child screamed unintelligibly. Megan spun toward the sound and saw a tall dark shape carrying the girl toward the already open window.

  “Stop!” she yelled. “Let her go.”

  Without thinking, she ran toward the man, stopping long enough to grab the poker from beside the small fireplace in the room. She could see his arm around Bonnie’s waist as he hauled her along. He already had one leg out the window.

  Megan raised the poker and brought it down hard on the man’s shoulder. He grunted in pain. His head turned toward her. Instinctively, she shrank back. Dark eyes glared at her above the cloth he’d tied over his lower face. A hat had been pulled low on his forehead. She stared, mesmerized by his gaze. There was something familiar about his eyes, something horribly familiar.

  Then it didn’t matter who he was. She raised the poker again. He ducked away, in the process releasing the child. Megan grabbed Bonnie and thrust the girl behind her.

  “Get out!” she screamed at the man. “Go away!” She hit him agai
n and again until he stumbled out the window and made his way down a ladder. She kept screaming, even after he’d run into the forest.

  Only then did the fear swamp her, leaving her shaken. Her teeth chattered and her legs refused to support her. She had to hold on to the window frame for balance. After catching her breath, she pushed the ladder hard so it slowly moved away from the house and crashed to the ground. She closed the window and then turned toward Bonnie.

  The little girl huddled in a corner of the room, sobbing wildly. Megan dropped the poker and hurried to her.

  “Hush, honey,” she said, pulling her close and holding on tight. Bonnie trembled in her embrace. “I know you’re scared, but it’s all right now. You’re safe.”

  “H-he s-said he was gonna h-hurt me,” Bonnie whimpered, clinging to her.

  “It’s over. You’re fine, honey. You’re with me, now.” Megan stroked Bonnie’s back and arms, then smoothed the child’s hair away from her face. “Come on, we’re going to go to my room and stay in my bed. We’ll be together. He won’t come back.”

  Bonnie continued to hold on to her, so Megan picked her up and carried her down the hall to her bedroom. She closed the door and locked it, then set Bonnie on the bed. After settling her under the covers, Megan sat next to her with her back against the headboard. She leaned over and opened the nightstand drawer. Her father had left her capable of taking care of more than the store. He’d left her able to protect herself. She pulled out a derringer.

  The small pistol was cold and deadly looking in her hand, but she was prepared to use it. Megan put her arm around the girl and fixed her gaze on her locked door. No one was going to hurt Bonnie. Not while she had any say in the matter.

  A thousand questions filled her mind. Who would try to take Bonnie, and why? It didn’t make sense. She wasn’t a danger to anyone. She had no family, she didn’t know anyone except for a few people in town. There had to be a mistake. But the man must have known he was kidnapping a child.