Janie and the Judge (Montana Women Book 3)

by Nancy Pirri

  “Cane, you can’t leave yourself open to that!” Simon protested.

  With a grin, Cane half rose and said, “You can’t stop me so start moving, Judge.”

  Cane crouched then ran across the church yard, shots ringing through the air. Simon swore when he saw Cane duck just as a bullet tore through his Stetson.

  Simon knew he’d wasted precious time so he lifted Janie into his arms and ran for the carriage. Luckily the horses wore blinders for while they danced to the tune of the ringing shots they hadn’t lurched away. Just before Simon reached the carriage, pain tore through his shoulder. He nearly dropped his precious cargo but hung on and yanked open the carriage door. Simon laid Janie gently on the floor, slammed the door shut and crouched at the side of the vehicle.

  He lay flat on the ground now and peered under the carriage. He was in direct line of three pairs of boots, running toward him. He started to stand, ready to jump up onto the carriage seat to drive away but paused when more shots fired and shouts came, then all was quiet, except for the sobs of women and children. Looking beneath the wagon again he saw three sets of boots lined up in a row, soles up. It appeared James and Cane and his deputies had taken control of the situation.

  Simon slowly rose, pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and pressed it against his bleeding shoulder. He saw it was only a flesh wound, but he groaned when he thought about Janie’s wound he hadn’t had time to tend. He yanked open the door and found her laying on the floor still, her eyes closed. The wound had stopped bleeding but she was so still. He’d lost her.

  Tears started sliding down his cheeks until he saw her chest rise and fall. A prayer of thanks resonated in his head. He had to get Doctor Wiseman, likely with the others near the church.

  He stood up and looked behind at the crowd of people rising cautiously to their feet and spotted the doctor.

  “Doc! Doctor Wiseman!” he called.

  “Here, judge!”

  Simon looked toward the church and saw Wiseman headed for him.”

  “My…my wife’s been shot.” He heard the trembling in his voice. God in heaven, I can’t lose her!

  Wiseman arrived and leaning inside the carriage checked Janie quickly. “She’s got a bullet in her,” he said. “Thank God it’s above her heart, still it needs to come out immediately.”

  Annie and Katie arrived and saw Janie lying prone on the floor with her eyes shut. Katie whispered, “Let’s get her over to your office, doctor.”

  “Yes,” Simon agreed.

  “No. I’ve got to get that bullet out right now—right here. With the jostling of the carriage the bullet could shift position, which could be worse for her.”

  Simon cursed and swept his hair back from his forehead. A crowd had formed around the carriage. He saw worry on people’s faces, mirroring his own. Annie stepped up beside him.

  “Don’t worry. Doc has the steadiest of hands. I know. Besides, I’ve had no bad premonitions, but several dreams of happiness for you two.”

  Simon smiled. “Thank you, Annie. I needed that.”

  Annie was known for having premonitions—usually before something awful happened. Why she hadn’t experienced any regarding this awful event taking place, though, Simon had no idea—unless she had and didn’t want to tell him.

  “You’ve been shot!” she exclaimed.

  “I’d forgotten I had.” Simon looked at his shoulder. “Just nicked me is all.”

  “I’ll tend to you after your wife, judge. I’ve got my medical bag with me. Simon, fetch it from my rig, please.”

  James stepped through the crowd. “I’ve got it here, doc,” and handed over the big black satchel. James turned to the waiting crowd, their faces filled with worry. “Everyone? Head on over to Katie’s Palace. We’ll be along shortly. There’s plenty to eat and drink.”

  “James? Cane? We’ll take your children on over there,” said the pastor, his wife at his side.

  Both men nodded, as did Annie and Katie before the two women turned back to Janie and the doc, ready to lend assistance.

  Slowly, the crowd dispersed with varying expressions of sadness as they left.

  “What needs to be done, doc?” Simon asked.

  “I want you to go sit on the church steps until I’m done. That’s the best thing for you to do, Judge.”

  “No way in hell am I leaving my wife’s side!”

  James grabbed one of Simon’s arms, and Cane the other as they dragged him over to the step. “He’s right, Simon. Katie and Annie have helped the doc before so let them do their work.”

  “She might need me.”

  “Of course she will, after the doc’s done with her.”

  It took all of Simon’s willpower to stay put on the steps, and when Janie screamed from inside the carriage, Simon wilted on the church step and shuddered. Then all was quiet. A long time passed before Annie returned to their side.

  “Doc says she’ll be fine. He got the bullet out, thank heavens. It wasn’t in all that deep.” She smiled at Simon. “She’s awake and asking for you.”

  Simon crossed the yard and stopped in the doorway of the carriage. Leaning over his wife he saw her white complexion and tear-filled, anguished eyes. “Simon?”

  “Yes, darling,” he choked out.

  “I love you. And I don’t want you to blame yourself for what happened.”

  He leaned down and kissed her forehead, taking her hand in his. “We’ll talk later.”

  With assistance from Cane, Simon lifted his wife carefully from the floor of the carriage and into his arms as they rode back to Katie’s Palace in the carriage.

  Cane went to Clive Miller and his gang, now lying on the ground, sprawled in death. Bending down, Cane placed his fingers against Clive’s neck, then shouted, “James! Miller’s alive!”

  James and the doctor came over and stood beside Miller. “Damn, this does not make things easier, does it?”

  Just then the man’s eyes opened and James saw blazing hatred in them. “What?” he whispered, “Not happy I haven’t met my maker yet? That’s too bad, isn’t it?”

  Between gritted teeth, James said, “For you it is. You’ll be spending a lot of time in jail, Miller, while Simon and Janie have many years of happiness together.”

  “One day, I’ll be out—I’ll be back…” Clive closed his eyes again, unable to finish his sentence.

  Cane met James’s eyes. “We have to tell Simon he’s still alive.”

  “I know.”

  “You know how he’s going to react to all of this, don’t you?”

  James sighed. “Yeah. I’ll probably have to lock Simon up until after Clive goes to trial and is sentenced and sent to prison.”

  Doc kneeled down to Clive while James and Cane stood guard over him.

  As soon as Janie and Simon returned to Katie’s Palace, Simon helped Janie into her nightgown and put her to bed. Simon’s heart wrenched at the sight of all the bandaging across her chest and swore if Clive hadn’t died he’d kill him.

  Janie didn’t argue about being put to bed. As she sat, back against the headboard, she scowled at the doctor.

  “What did you give me, doc? I can hardly keep my eyes open.”

  “Just a bit of laudanum. It’s a relaxant and you’ll sleep like a newborn all night long.”

  “But this is my wedding party! I can’t miss it.”

  “We’ll have another party, honey, when you’re well,” Simon promised. Leaning down he kissed her forehead.

  She gave him a wan smile. “Okay. I’m holding you to that promise, dear husband.” She sniffed and wiped at the tears streaming from her eyes. “It’s just not fair. Give folks my apologies and tell them to have a good time without me. There’s enough food for two wedding parties.”

  “Don’t cry,” Simon whispered.

  She did, more so now that he’d mentioned it.

  “I’ll be back tomorrow, Mrs. Hopkins, to check on you.”

  “Thank you, doctor.” She looked at Simon. “Now go
join the party while I sleep.”

  “I’m staying here with you.” He held up his hand when she opened her mouth to protest. “James, Katie, Cane and Annie are entertaining our guests. Like I said, in about a month you’ll be good as new and we’ll have another party.”

  “Oh!” Janie gasped.

  “What is it?”

  “I’d hired Jerald Hagstrom from the apothecary who promised to take our wedding portrait!”

  “He’s coming back when you’re well enough. Katie’s going to try and clean up your gown. If it’s irreparable then we’ll purchase you a new one. You’ll get your picture.”

  Janie reached out and pressed her hands against the sides of Simon’s face, pulling him closer. She kissed him gently on the lips and his heart beat rapidly. How he wanted to return her kiss with all the pent up passion he felt for her but he restrained himself. She wasn’t well, and he had a lot to think about—including releasing her from their wedding vows.

  He sat with her and held her hand until she fell asleep, which was only a few minutes, then he rearranged her covers and left her, quietly closing the door behind him. Downstairs, the crowd had thinned. Once people ate and socialized a bit, without the bride and groom, the party ended early. He found Cane and James at a back table, seemingly deep in conversation. When he arrived at their table they straightened up in their chairs, noticing him with matching wide grins.

  Simon grew suspicious as he took a seat. “What’s with you two grinning like a couple of hyenas?”

  “Just welcoming back the groom, that’s all,” James said.

  “How’s Janie?” Cane asked.

  “Do you believe she wanted to come down to the party?”

  “Can’t say as I blame her. Don’t think I had much of a chance to congratulate the two of you.” Cane looked down. “You might want to go and change into another jacket. You’ve got blood on that one.”

  “I don’t feel like changing clothes. Besides, everyone was witness to what happened. It doesn’t matter,” he grumbled. “And don’t worry about the well wishes.” Glancing between the two men, he saw the confused looks on their faces. “I’m not consummating the marriage. As a matter of fact, once Janie’ s well, I’m filing for an annulment.”

  “What in the hell!” James said. “Why would you do such a thing? That woman loves you.”

  “And I love her. But I made a mistake by marrying her.”

  Cane stretched his legs out beneath the table. “Little late to decide that, isn’t it?”

  Simon sighed. “You two don’t understand.”

  “Then explain.” Cane added, “We’re listening.”

  “Janie was shot because of her being important to me.”

  Cane and James exchanged confused looks. “We don’t understand,” James said.

  “It means exactly what I said; I’m the one to blame for Janie nearly getting killed.”

  Cane shook his head. “No, you aren’t. If anything, Janie’s the responsible party. It was her brother-in-law, after all. Hell, you’d never even met the guy until he showed up in your courtroom.”

  “True, but he wanted vengeance. He wanted Janie which was why she went along with him that night back to Butte. She went willingly because she was afraid Miller would kill me.”

  “And today proves your little woman has damned good insight.” James frowned and looked at Cane. “Why do you suppose Annie hadn’t had any premonitions about all of this happening?”

  Cane looked uncomfortable and he pulled at the button at the neck of his shirt. “Uh, when she’s expecting a baby, she seems to lose a lot of her abilities. We’ve both noticed it. She thinks it’s a blessing.”

  James grinned. “We all know how Annie hates having those premonitions. Do you suppose that’s why she’d been so quick to have another baby?”

  “Damn it. You are too perceptive. That’s exactly the reason.” Cane sighed. “Enough about me and my family.” He looked at Simon. “You can’t annul your marriage. You’ll break Janie’s heart and you’ll be unhappy.”

  “I need her every bit as much as she needs me, but by association with me she’ll always be exposed to danger. I refuse having her live her life constantly looking over her shoulder, and I refuse to be always guarding her back and worrying. It’s not fair to either one of us.”

  James said, “You knew all of this before you proposed marriage to her. Why in the hell did you?”

  Simon groaned, “After Clive convinced Janie to return to Butte with him, I knew she was protecting me. It wasn’t right. And I knew, with Janie gone from my life just that one day, I couldn’t live my life without her.”

  “So, what’s changed?” Cane asked. “You were able to put your fears aside then.”

  “This time Janie’s been harmed—could have been killed. That’s the difference.” He rose from his chair and added, “I’m turning in.”

  Simon took the steps quietly and entered Janie’s bedroom—their bedroom now—and sank into the chair for a nightly vigil. She was sleeping soundly he saw and while the bed looked inviting, he couldn’t chance harming her in the night, not to mention the fact if they didn’t consummate the marriage, an annulment could easily be obtained.

  He’d sleep in the chair. Then, in the morning, he’d need to pretend everything was fine between them. He’d tell her, eventually, about an annulment, but not until she’d healed. Meanwhile, he’d have to find the fortitude to keep his hands off his beautiful wife.

  One week was about all the time Janie could stand being abed. One week of seeing the guilt and sadness in Simon’s face was enough. They had to talk about what happened to her, but he avoided her, or managed to change the topic each time she mentioned the incident. She knew he believed it was his fault she’d been shot, which wasn’t true. It was due to her past with Clive and had nothing to do with Simon. Yet, she imagined his old fears had risen to the surface, but she had had plenty of time in bed planning how she’d make him forget everything that had happened.

  Janie sat on the side of her bed and dressed in clothes, for the first time in a week, she smiled. While she’d never played the coquette before, she found the thought exciting, and it would be an easy thing to do—seducing her husband. She loved him and she knew he loved her but was fighting his feelings for her now. She’d have to work hard to change his mind, and the only way she could think to do that, if talking didn’t work, was to seduce him.

  Once they consummated their marriage, she hoped his doubts would diminish.

  She looked up, startled when the door opened. Simon strode in with a scowl on his face. He whipped off his hat and glared down at her. “What in the hell do you think you’re doing?”

  Janie stood up and glared right back. “Getting dressed.”

  Simon pointed at the bed. “Get back in there right now. Doc said—”

  “Doc said I’m fine to get up and start moving around. Ask him yourself.” She took a step forward, drawing closer with a smile. “Besides, I am past the point of being coddled and need to start living my life as Mrs. Simon Hopkins, beginning now.”

  Janie put her arms around Simon’s neck and urged him down to her. She kissed him full on the lips and eased her body right up against his, ignoring the dull ache in her chest from her injury, which was easy to do since Simon was returning her kiss with an urgency that boiled her own blood. She heard a thud and smiled against his lips; he’d dropped his hat and now his arms were around her waist, holding her against his long, lean body.

  After a few moments he released her, settled his hands on her arms and stepped back, putting distance between them. “Now, now, none of that. You’re still very ill.”

  “No, I’m not,” Janie insisted. “Stop treating me like I’m a china bowl in a shop”

  “If you insist on being up and about, come down stairs and have some breakfast.”

  Moving close again Janie drank in the lovely sight of her husband, from his straight dark hair to his piercing eyes to his rangy body clad in a light
weight jacket. She met his gaze, briefly, until he broke the connection between them. Janie felt a coldness sweep through her body, a disturbing atmosphere in the room made her frown. He was keeping his distance from her.

  “Simon? We need to have a little talk about us—our marriage.”

  He blew out a deep sigh. “Figured we’d have to get around to that sooner or later.”

  “Do you love me?”

  “You know I do.”

  “Then why are you behaving as though I’ll break apart into a million pieces if you touch me?”

  “Getting shot has a lot to do with it,” he said dryly. “You’re still healing.”

  “I’m fine! You feel guilty, don’t you?” she whispered, even as tears filled her eyes.

  “Don’t you see that my worst nightmare has become reality?”

  “Clive shooting me wasn’t your fault.”

  “But it was because you married me.”

  “Yes, it was, but he’s in jail now and, according to James, likely to be there for a long, long time. As I said when you first came in, I want to get on with our lives. I want to be your wife in every way.”

  “Oh, sweetheart,” he groaned, “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

  Janie narrowed her eyes. “What are you saying?”

  He swept his hair back from his forehead and paced the floor, ending up at the window that overlooked Main Street.

  “Simon?” God, she hated how her voice quivered, but she knew what he was going to say.

  Simon gave her a sad smile as he slowly turned to face her. “I’ve started the paperwork to have our marriage annulled.”

  “You can’t do that!”

  “I can. I did. It’s for the best.” He walked to her, took her face in his hands and kissed her with sweet tenderness. Releasing her he bent and picked up his hat and set it on his head. “As soon as the paperwork’s ready to be signed I’ll let you know.”

  “You would tear us apart because of yours fears, then? “Why? Clive’s locked up good and tight now. And there were so many witnesses to his crime and I can’t see, once he goes to trial, being released. Can you?”