Remember Me When: A Women of Hope Novel
Page 29
“And Roger didn’t have it.”
Roberts shook his head.
“So he gave you my supplies instead, things to trade with Folsom that he needed more than the whiskey he bought…where?”
With a wave of his hand, the captain gestured to where Folsom still stood.
“I…uh…I go so far as Lillybelle’s Palace down by Pendleton. I know the owner. She gives me a good price, and…well, I’m always needing to serve my customers, you know.”
“You don’t order through Metcalf?”
“Metcalf won’t deal in drink of any kind. I ordered mainly from Roger, until…you know.”
“Roger,” Adam said at Nathan’s elbow. “It all comes back to Roger. What did happen to the man?”
Captain Roberts lost all color in his cheeks. “My men and I saddled up and started down the trail for the fort. But I swung back. I wanted to push Roger to get our whiskey in. I needed it. When I got there, Mrs. Nolan…well, she was laid out on the floor by the hearth. Looked to me like she’d died. Roger insisted she’d be fine, that she’d fallen before, she was awkward. We…argued, and he swung an iron poker at me. I grabbed it, twisted it from his hand. I didn’t intend to have him use it on me, and…and…well, I…”
As his voice died off, he moved his hands into a helpless spread.
Adam stepped closer. “You turned the poker on him. And then you set fire to the place to cover the murder.”
“I didn’t mean to. I didn’t mean to kill him. It was an accident. He came at me…he stumbled, and…”
“What about Faith?” Nathan asked. “You left her there to burn alive.”
“I thought she was dead already. I thought he was lying, that he’d finally killed her. She never moved the whole time. I never would have—”
“You were going to let her hang for what you had done.”
That did it. The man broke down, admitted guilt had been eating him inside. The horror at the thought of leaving a woman, an innocent woman, to die like that. And then to learn she had survived only to pay the price for his crime. Torn between the need to save himself for his wife’s sake, and knowing what awaited Faith, he’d been wrestling with his conscience all morning long.
But he’d failed to act.
He continued to talk, to tell all the dreadful details, how he’d paid Theo to sprinkle rat poison on the box lunch; how he’d spurred the horse on Main Street; how he’d sent Theo to do away with Faith at the church, since he’d feared she’d seen or heard him while she lay bleeding on the floor the night Roger died; how Theo had struck her but instead of killing her, he’d gone after the easy cash in the reverend’s desk. He didn’t stop until he’d confessed to it all.
Joy crept into Nathan’s heart.
Faith was innocent.
She was safe.
Bitter tears poured down Faith’s face. When would she be led, like a lamb to the slaughter, to that rope that was to end her life?
In the dark, stark cell, she prayed for courage, since she didn’t want to flinch before the crowd that had found her guilty, even though she was certain, more so each day that went by, that she hadn’t killed Roger. And she’d certainly not done any of the other things.
“Father…I don’t want to die. There’s so much I’ve missed in life—I’ve missed life, for the most part. If there’s a way to avoid this…”
She let her words die off. She had been offered a way that presented her with the promise of a future. And she’d turned Nathan down. Now, in the silence of her cell, she admitted what she’d tried to avoid. She was a coward, indeed. She feared marrying Nathan, falling in love with him, and then having to watch him from the distance created by a lack of love on his part.
Did she fear death at the end of a rope enough to take back her rejection? Or was she willing to spend the rest of her life, however long or short that might be, at the side of yet another man who didn’t love her?
“Hey, there.”
She looked up and blushed. The man who’d held her thoughts captive stood on the other side of the bars. “Hello, Nathan. I’m surprised to see you here.”
He smiled, and then he did the most outlandish thing. He shook Marshal Blair’s mass of keys right in front of his face. “I’m about to break you out of jail.”
She gasped. “Oh, no! I could never do that. It wouldn’t be right. The court…the judge—wait. Where is the marshal? What have you done with the poor man?”
Nathan jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “He’s in his office. In fact, he’s the one who gave me his keys.”
“I don’t understand.”
His grin widened. “Ah, but you will. As soon as we get you out of here, and back to the parsonage. Mrs. Alton will be one mighty happy lady tonight. Only a mite less happy than you.”
“I’m going back to the Altons’ house? Why? What’s happened?”
He shot a glance up. “Looks like the Lord’s not done with you down here yet. He’s blessed us with the identity of the killer. You’re no longer to even give a thought to that trial or worry about the sentence. You’re a free woman, Faith Nolan. You’re free to go.”
He unlocked the cell door, and after pausing in disbelief, Faith stumbled out. A moment later, she spun and snagged the Bible from the bed, and then hurried back out again.
“You have a great deal of explaining to do,” she said, “but I’m happy to have you do that explaining anywhere but here.”
He caught her by the shoulder. “Don’t hurry out yet. I need you to understand one thing. My proposal? It still stands.”
“But—”
“Now, don’t go speaking so fast yet. I have my reasons, and I want to lay them down before we go anywhere. I think we would make a great match, especially seeing as how you’re still alone and with nowhere to go. I’m alone, too, but I have a camp, a solid cabin, food on the table, and warm clothes to wear. I’ve never met another woman as smart, hardworking, decent, and downright good as you. If I’m ever to marry, you’re the sort I want by my side. Give it some thought. You don’t have to answer right away—”
“I don’t have to answer right away, but I can,” Faith said, chin held high. “I already said I won’t ever marry again on account of my basic needs. I already made one marriage bargain, and you saw how that turned out. I won’t do that again.”
“I heard you when you first said it, when you said it again, and now a third time. But I don’t think you heard what I said. I’m persistent.”
“I’m sure of myself.”
“I don’t give up.”
“I’ve given in too much.”
“This time is different. I’m different.”
“Ah…” she said. “But you see, Nathan. I’m not.”
He leaned back, the grin still on his face. “We shall have to see, then, Faith. We shall have to see.”
Epilogue
“The sack of coffee is right behind the barrel of pickles to the right of the bolts of gray wool,” Faith said from behind the counter at the logging camp’s company store. “You see it, Woody?”
“No, ma’am,” the logger said. “Cain’t say I can find anything the way you keep things in this place, especially these last few months. I don’t know as I see any order in here—ah! There it is. What’s coffee got to do with pickles and wool?”
Faith laughed. “Not much. That’s where Nathan and the newest fellow he hired set it when they unloaded this last wagonload.”
“It were easier before we got that road put in, when all we had was what those three mules could bring up. Speaking of, I think all three of them are getting lazy now that they spend so much time grazing in that pasture.”
“They earned their rest. Which reminds me, there should be a barrel of apples around here and I promised them each one.” Faith looked around until she spotted the barrel. “I know I haven’t kept things so well these last few months, but I wasn’t about to risk Nathan’s wrath by wrestling fifty-pound sacks, you know.”
“How right you ar
e,” Nathan said, surprising Faith as he walked into the store. “You’re not touching those heavy sacks. Not these days, you’re not.”
She spun to face her husband and smiled, as he placed a tender hand on her swollen middle. She laced her fingers through his. “I didn’t know you were back. I thought you’d gone with the rest of the men to the new stand of trees you’re taking down.”
He shrugged. “Got them started, and then, well…”
“I’d best be heading back to my stove.” Woody shook his head. “Who’d’a thought the two of you…”
“Yes,” Nathan said, smiling. “Who’d’a thought the two of us…?”
“You did.”
“You’re right, Mrs. Bartlett.”
She chuckled. “Hm…you might want to remember that, Mr. Bartlett.”
“When it comes to the store…that’s always the case.” He wrapped his arms around her waist, laced his hands at the base of her back, and leaned away to meet her gaze. “You have a gift for business, Faith.”
She placed her hands on his muscular forearms, relishing the power there, and even more, the gentleness of the man. “Numbers are simple. It’s not hard to keep track of them.”
“Only numbers I’m interested in these days,” her husband of one year countered, “are one plus one plus one.”
Faith reached up to cup his cheek in her palm, tears of joy, so quick to rise these days, filling her eyes. “That, my love, is no group of numbers. That, Nathan, is a family—ours.”
“Ours…”
She felt the smile on his lips when he covered hers with yet another of the million kisses they would share in the years to come. As husband and wife.
In a marriage full of love, more wonderful than any dream.
Reading Group Guide
Read 1 Samuel 25:14–42. How is Faith’s story similar to that of Abigail? How are they different?
At the beginning of the book, Faith feels hopeless in her marriage, worse than right after her parents’ murders. When in your life have you felt like there was no hope? How did you respond? How did God answer?
Although Roger is a fictional character, based on a biblical one, spousal abuse is only too real a crime in our society. Have you learned to identify the signs? How do you, as a believer, respond to it? Have you ever reached out to a victim? Have you ever volunteered at a women’s shelter? If not, what’s held you back?
Nathan was determined to focus all his attention and energy on his logging operation. God, on the other hand, had different plans for him: Faith. When have your plans been foiled by God’s much better ones? How long did it take you to recognize God’s loving hand in the circumstances?
Do you think Faith’s pride hurt her? Have you ever been in a situation where you sacrificed for the sake of pride?
The women of Bountiful saw Faith’s true nature. What societal biases clouded the men’s reason? Have you ever faced a similar situation? How have you handled it?
Captain Roberts assumed Faith was dead when his fight with Roger turned deadly. Instead of checking on her, he tried to hide his crime by burning the cabin, and then ran away. Starting with Adam, we’ve all tried that at some point in our lives. When did you try to run away from accountability to God? What brought you up short? What happened after you finally faced Him?
Nathan was willing to give up his freedom to save Faith. When have you given up something major for another’s sake? In the end, God blessed him richly for his sacrifice. How did God bless your love and sacrifice?
Faith, as Abigail in Scripture, felt convicted to do the right thing by Nathan. Have you ever had to stick your neck out like that? If so, when? What was the outcome?
In our lives, a “happily ever after” is hard to identify, since our days continue to go on. Author Ginny Aiken keeps a prayer journal so that she can see how God answers her prayers. Do you recognize any “happily ever afters” in your life? How do you keep track of God’s blessings? How would it impact your life if you did track His mercies?
Also by Ginny Aiken
For Such a Time as This
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Contents
Title Page
Welcome
Dedication
Epigraph
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Epilogue
Reading Group Guide
Also by Ginny Aiken
Newsletters
Copyright
Copyright © 2013 by Ginny Anikienko
Cover design by Studio Gearbox. Cover photography by Brandon Hill. Copyright © 2013 by Hachette Book Group, Inc.
All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
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First ebook edition: June 2013
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ISBN 978-1-4555-1811-1