A Texas Promise

by Laura Conner Kestner

  “I understand that, but there’s one other consideration. What about the baby’s father? You said Lucy was working for a wealthy family. Where did they live?”

  “All…all I know is that the baby’s father is dead.”

  He continued to question her, and Maggie answered each question, but she couldn’t answer them fully.

  “Why do I get the feeling you’re still holding something back?”

  She shook her head, unsure how to answer that.

  Eli rubbed his temples. “All right. I’ve got things to do around town. I’ll be back to check on you soon.”

  “Thank you, Eli. You sure you wouldn’t like a piece of cake before you go?”

  He pushed back his chair. “No, I’d better get on back to the jail. But thanks.”

  Maggie had one other question for him. “Does Peg know? About the baby, I mean?”

  “Yes, and Nathaniel.”

  She pressed her hands to her face. “I’m so sorry about this, and embarrassed—”

  A knock on the front door stopped her. Eli motioned for her to remain in the kitchen and headed for the front.

  Maggie relaxed when she heard him say, “Come on in.” It was someone he trusted.

  “Came to check on my patients,” Dr. Nathaniel said, as he stepped into the kitchen ahead of Eli.

  They all knew it wasn’t her baby, and yet they were treating her with kindness and respect. Grateful, but still embarrassed, Maggie said, “We’re both doing well, doctor. Thank you for the fine care you gave us.”

  He nodded, and then went straight to the box to look at the baby. “You’re welcome, but it was mostly Peg. And please, call me Nathaniel.”

  “I’m grateful to both of you.”

  While he looked the baby over, with Eli hovering nearby, Maggie studied the two brothers, noticing their similarities—dark hair, brown eyes, firm jaw line. But there were also differences. Eli wore denim pants, light gray shirt and black vest. And a long black coat—a duster—over it all.

  Nathaniel also wore a dark vest, and light-colored shirt, but he’d paired it with dark trousers. Nathaniel was clean shaven, and Eli had a day’s stubble. The main difference was there was no gun on Nathaniel’s hip.

  The doctor glanced up to see her staring. “Don’t fret. The baby is doing remarkably well.”

  “Thank you for checking,” Maggie said. “Would you like something to eat? I have a cake ready to slice.”

  He didn’t even hesitate. “Sounds good.”

  Maggie was surprised when the sheriff pulled out a chair next to his brother and sat down again, too.

  “I guess maybe I’ll take that cake after all,” Eli said.

  She sliced another piece and set it before him, her casual smile belying her turmoil. Why was he staying? She’d told him everything that had happened that night.

  Well, almost everything.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Eli and Nathaniel were waiting at the depot for the returning newlyweds. Eli knew the minute Caleb stepped off the train that he had some big news.

  The youngest Calhoun brother strived hard for a steely lawman look, and it worked—most of the time, with most people. But Eli could read him almost as easily as he did his other brother.

  Despite their vastly different childhoods, and not even knowing of each other’s existence until a few months ago, there’d been an almost instant bond between him and Caleb. Once they’d gotten past a few punches.

  “So what’s got you lit up like you swallowed a lantern?” Eli asked him now.

  Caleb grinned. “I don’t know how you do that, but yes, I do have some news.” He paused and drew in a deep breath, managing to convey both elation and a little alarm. “You’re looking at a soon-to-be Papa.”

  Eli’s reaction was a blend of genuine happiness for Caleb and a surprising stab of envy.

  The happiness quickly took top place. He slapped Caleb on the back. “Congratulations, Papa.”

  “Thanks. Abby insisted that I not make a big fuss,” Caleb grumbled. “She’s as happy about the news as I am, but she seems to think that a quiet announcement once we get back to her family’s boarding house will suffice.”

  They all three glanced in the direction of Abby, who was surrounded by her own family, and smiled at the sudden burst of excited exclamations and a flurry of hugs.

  “I think maybe she went ahead and told them,” Nathaniel said. “Looks like they’re as happy as we are for y’all.”

  “So what did your bride think of New York?” Eli asked.

  “She loved it, but not as much as she loves Moccasin Rock.” Caleb looked around him. “I was surprised to discover I missed this little town, too. So what’s been going on since I left?”

  “They’ve begun construction on the bridge to Boone Springs,” Eli told him. “They’re almost through with the hotel, and the surveyors are working on the site for the new courthouse.”

  “Which means lots of folks in town,” Nathaniel said.

  Eli wanted to ask Caleb for his opinion about the situation with Maggie Radford, but first there was one other bit of news he wanted to share. Before he could get the words out, Nathaniel beat him to it. “We started going to church right after you left. Got saved and baptized.”

  Caleb’s expression softened. “I’m glad to hear that. Real glad.”

  As Caleb and Nathaniel talked, Eli reflected on how strange life could be. When an old gun-toting evangelist had preached a revival during the summer, it had changed several lives, including Eli’s, even though he hadn’t attended even once.

  He wished he could tell Caleb how he felt, how grateful he was to both him and the old preacher, but it was difficult to put into words all that had gone into making such a decision.

  “I sure am sorry I wasn’t here for the baptism,” Caleb said. “Wouldn’t have minded seeing you guys dunked in the Brazos.”

  “Thought about waiting,” Eli admitted. “But Pastor Wilkie warned us that the river was getting awfully cold, and that we might have to wait until next spring. Didn’t want to wait for months, and didn’t want to catch my death either.”

  Caleb laughed. “Can’t say I blame you. So, no trouble while I was gone?”

  Eli’s hesitation was brief, yet Caleb picked up on it. “Something wrong?”

  “In a way,” Eli said, “but it’s not something I want to get into out here. Can you come by the jail when you get a chance?”

  Caleb’s gaze sharpened. “Let me say hello to everyone, then I’ll head that way. Abby and I are staying with her folks at the boarding house until we get our housing situation figured out. I plan to build us a place as soon as possible.”

  “I know of one vacant house you might consider in the meantime,” Eli said.

  Nathaniel also threw in a suggestion or two, and then they watched as Caleb made his way to the Hortons. The welcome he received was just as enthusiastic as Abby’s had been. Apparently everyone was glad to have him back in town.

  Although Eli had no doubt that he could handle whatever trouble was coming, he had to admit it felt good to have someone to back him up.

  In less than an hour, Caleb was sitting in front of the stove at the jailhouse. He glanced around. “Where’s Bliss?”

  “Who knows,” Eli said. “Did you need him?”

  “No, wanted to say hi. Abby and I saw him in Weatherford, leaving a bank. I hollered at him, but I guess he didn’t hear me. Kept walking.”

  “You sure it was Bliss?” What was the old man doing there?

  “Yep. Now what’s on your mind?”

  Eli told him about Maggie Radford’s unusual arrival, and everything he’d learned since then. He’d already filled Nathaniel in on her confession about the baby.

  Caleb let out a low whistle. “That’s some story. What do you need from me?”

  “I think she remembers more than she’s letting on,” Eli said. “I was hoping that you’d talk to her, in the guise of investigating the fire. See if you can learn anyth
ing new.”

  Caleb glanced at Nathaniel, who nodded his head in agreement. “She’s definitely holding something back.”

  Putting his hands behind his head, Caleb leaned back in the chair and studied Eli. “You’re the one who intimidates everyone, why can’t you get her to talk?”

  “That’s just it,” Eli said. “I don’t want to intimidate or scare her. She’s been through too much.”

  Caleb looked at him with an odd expression. “I see.”

  “You see what?” Eli growled.

  Caleb shrugged.

  “Look,” Eli said, “I would feel this way about anyone who’d been through what she has. I’d rather not add to her misery by badgering, if we could get the same information through charm and sweet talk. And let’s face it, you’re the one that people find so charming.”

  Caleb glowered at him, obviously not thrilled by that statement, which gave Eli at least a little satisfaction.

  “Okay,” Caleb said, “what do you need, specifically?”

  “When Maggie finally admitted the baby wasn’t hers, she was still in a great deal of turmoil about something. I want to know what.”

  Shrugging, Caleb said, “After everything she went through, maybe her fear and mistrust is going to linger for a while.”

  “That’s true.” Eli knew how hard it was to forget some things. “But what if the baby’s mother didn’t really die?”

  Neither Caleb nor Nathaniel had an answer to that.

  “And even if she did,” Eli continued, “what about the baby’s grandparents? Lucy was an orphan, but the baby’s father has family somewhere. What if they want her?”

  “You’ve got a point,” Nathaniel said. “Did Maggie tell you who they were?”

  Eli shook his head. “No. All she would tell me is that Lucy said they were horrible people. Maybe she’ll tell Caleb who they are.”

  Caleb reached for his coffee, drained the last of it, and placed the cup on the desk. “Why don’t we make sure the mother did die in the fire, and then go on from there?”

  “Nathaniel and I went by the asylum in Fair Haven, or what’s left of it.” Eli said. “I also talked to the Claiborne County Sheriff, Shiloh Clark, about the bodies they’d recovered. I couldn’t ask too many questions, and no specifics, or he would’ve wondered why. According to Clark, one woman had family to claim her, but several were buried at the Fair Haven cemetery in unmarked graves.”

  “What happened to the patients who survived?” Caleb asked.

  “Sheriff Clark said they loaded them up and took them to a facility in Cartersville.” Eli knew in his heart that he needed to visit that asylum, and yet he still hated having to do it.

  “I feel like a heel, doing this behind Maggie’s back,” he admitted, “and I can’t even imagine having to take that baby from her, but…” His words trailed off.

  “You have a responsibility to do the right thing,” Nathaniel said softly.

  Eli nodded.

  “If you want to check that place out,” Caleb said, “I’ll go with you.”

  “I appreciate it,” Eli said. “Having a Texas Ranger along is never a bad idea.” Eli looked at his other brother. “Do you want to go?”

  “I’d best stay here,” Nathaniel said. “Got several patients that need tending to.”

  “I understand. Do you mind checking on things at Peg’s if you get a chance?”

  “Don’t worry,” Nathaniel said, “I’ll look in on Maggie and the baby.”

  “Thanks,” Eli said. “I’m not sure exactly what I’m worried about. I have an uneasy feeling about all this.”

  And that unease was only growing stronger.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Eli and Caleb left early the next morning, taking a train to the Cartersville asylum, a rambling structure that had once been part of an old Army fort.

  It in no way resembled the place where Maggie had been held, but when they pushed through the iron gates and entered the front door there was definitely a sense of gloom.

  They were greeted by a formidable looking woman wearing a long black dress with a full-length white apron on top. There was a huge ring of keys attached to the wide leather belt at her waist. Is this the kind of woman that Maggie had seen? Eli also wasn’t sure if the woman was a guard or nurse. But he could understand how helpless Maggie must have felt.

  After Eli explained that he was there on behalf of a Fair Haven patient’s family member, which baby Lucinda truly was, the physician in charge invited them into his office and answered their questions. Working from what little he’d learned from Maggie, Eli gave the man Little Lucy’s description, full name and age, and what little he knew about her mental condition.

  The doctor countered with the same information about the patients who’d been transferred to his facility. None of them seemed like a match.

  “Because of the fire, it was all a rather hurried affair,” the man admitted. “And I’m not sure how accurate any of it is. We do have some young women, though. I normally try to sort the patients by those who were born with some sort of mental defect, and those who’ve developed some sort of mental or emotional derangement. For now, all the transfers have been grouped together.”

  The disorganization didn’t help reassure Eli that Lucy Gray wasn’t there. And he really wanted to know. “Is there a way we could actually see the patients?”

  The doctor studied him a moment. “I don’t normally let anyone into the wards. However, since you’re here in an official capacity I will make an exception. As long as you’re prepared for what you might encounter.”

  Eli had started to stand, but he sat back down. “Such as what?”

  “Anything,” the man said bluntly. “Some of these women are in a near comatose condition, while others are combative. Many of them are dangerous. Some of the inmates are chained, because they’re a danger to others.”

  Leading them out of his office and down a corridor that branched off into two long hallways, the doctor explained that the men were housed in separate quarters.

  After a few steps down the first hall, Eli wished he’d not asked for the personal tour. Caleb’s steps also slowed. The doors resembled cell doors, barred and narrow. Eli knew that in most asylums people were referred to as inmates, and he could see why.

  While the doctor was able to clinically assess the situation it was startling for Eli, and he suspected for Caleb, to see women in various stages of emotional and even physical distress. Some of the cells—and Eli could think of them no other way—held multiple inmates, and others only one or two. Some of the women were jeering and calling out to them and others were staring into space. Not all of them were dressed. It wasn’t for his sake that he wanted to leave. It was for theirs.

  Eli glanced at the doctor. “Sometimes their clothing is taken,” the man explained, “for a variety of reasons. Sometimes they undress themselves.”

  From the corner of his eye Eli saw a woman reach through the bars, trying to grab Caleb. She was wearing a baggy, shapeless dress that dragged the floor. Her arms were stick thin, her face gaunt, and her gray hair was clipped close to her head. She was babbling away to Caleb, seeming to plead with him, while his brother tried to soothe her and back away at the same time.

  Eli shook his head. People instinctively liked Caleb, even with a badge pinned to his vest. And yet people seemed scared of Eli, even without the badge. Of course, he was responsible for that. There’d been times in life that a hostile expression and harsh demeanor were all that kept him alive. That and his speed with a gun.

  Eli hung back, aware of the agitated murmur of those around him, his attention on Caleb. No telling what these people had been through, maybe at the hands of the law. He didn’t want to upset them more. He’d let Caleb handle everything.

  Even though Eli was listening to the doctor, he realized the woman was now saying something about a baby to Caleb. Baby? Had she been in the fire and managed to get away? Did she know anything about what had happened to Lucy Gray a
nd her child that night?

  Eli started toward the woman, but she suddenly pushed back from Caleb and stumbled away. Crawling on to a cot, she turned to face the wall.

  Caleb walked away from the cell, shaking his head, compassion in his eyes.

  “What was she telling you?” Eli asked.

  “I don’t really know for sure,” Caleb said. “She was crying and jabbering about her baby, and then sorta collapsed. The last thing I heard was her mumbling some nursery rhyme or poem.”

  Eli turned to the doctor. “Has she said anything else about a baby since she was transferred?”

  The doctor adjusted his glasses. “Even if she had, I doubt it’s relevant to your search. That’s not one of the Fair Haven patients. It’s a sad story. Some soldiers found her tied to a tree years ago. She was broken, physically and mentally, and wasn’t expected to live. Said she’d been left there by Indians. But she made a remarkable recovery. She even helps out here. Most of the time, you’d never know that anything was wrong with her. Every now and then, though, something will set her off.”

  They left the asylum a short time later. Although Eli was disturbed by what he’d seen, none of it had anything to do with Maggie Radford or Lucinda’s mother. It looked like Lucy Gray had died. Now Eli had to eliminate the grandparents as possible guardians.

  “When we get back to Moccasin Rock, will you talk to Maggie?” he asked Caleb. “See what you can discover?”

  “Sure,” Caleb said. “I can’t promise I’ll have any better luck than you did.”

  “I know. But I can’t let it go.”

  It wasn’t that Eli wanted to take the child away from Maggie. Just the opposite. He wanted her to be able to keep Lucinda.

  But not if the baby rightfully belonged to someone else.

  * * *

  Maggie stared at the ranger, trying hard not to fidget. She would tell him everything she’d told Eli. Then again, that really wasn’t everything.

  Not that she was happy about it. Hiding the truth wasn’t something she was accustomed to, and now she’d lied to not one, but two, lawmen.

  Caleb Calhoun had introduced himself as the sheriff’s brother, but she would’ve known he was related to Eli and Nathaniel without being told. Even though this man had green eyes, and the other two had brown, there was a strong family resemblance.