Rachel’s dismay was unmistakable. “I wanted him to be nice and clean and on his best behavior when they met for the first time,” she wailed. Then she asked, “How dirty was he?”
“Extremely,” Gabe said, a smile surfacing at the memory of Danny’s grimy condition.
Seeing how the corners of his mouth hiked up in amusement, she said, “This is not funny, Gabriel Gentry, though I can see how someone like you might see the humor in it.”
He refused to take offense at a statement he realized was rooted in some sort of motherly embarrassment.
“Danny had been digging worms,” he explained, “and he’d brought them with him. However, he was on his best behavior. Quite the young gentleman, in fact.”
“Really?” She still looked somewhat distressed, but her whole posture was more relaxed.
“You should have seen him, Rachel,” he said with a soft laugh. “It was very funny. He smoothed his hair.” Gabe mimicked the action. “And smeared more dirt on his face in the process, and when he started to shake her hand and saw how dirty it was, he stuck it behind his back instead.”
“Oh, no!”
He reached and took her hands in his, drawing her closer. For once she didn’t resist. “She adored him, Rachel,” he told her, his eyes smiling into hers. “Who wouldn’t?”
He brought her hands to his lips and pressed kisses to her palms. “Trust me when I say that everything will be fine.” He released his hold on her and drew his watch out of his pocket. “Unfortunately, I have to run you off right now because I’m supposed to take everyone to Caleb’s for dinner.”
“What about you and Libby?”
He shrugged and gave her hands a squeeze. “We didn’t really have a chance to talk. There were too many curiosity seekers milling about. I’ll have a better grasp of things after tonight, and you and I will talk tomorrow, while we share your box lunch.”
“You seem very confident that you’ll be the highest bidder,” she said, almost playfully.
“Confident enough.”
* * *
Libby was enchanted by Caleb and Abby’s brood. She spent time talking to Ben about his trapping, telling him how much Caleb had liked it as a boy, and cuddling Laura—both were Abby’s children from her marriage to William Carter.
After Abby put the children to bed, the adults retired to the parlor to enjoy coffee and a slice of Abby’s buttermilk pie so that Libby could tell her side of the story, which was, she insisted, one of the reasons she’d come back to Wolf Creek. As it turned out, Frank had been correct in setting the story straight as far as he knew the truth. Libby filled in the blanks.
“I fell for Lucas Gentry the first time I saw him,” she said, a reminiscent smile on her face. “With my very different...upbringing, he was the antithesis of everything familiar, which I found quite exciting. He wasn’t a handsome man in the traditional sense, but he was ruggedly good-looking, and there was an attractive brashness and self-confidence about him that drew me, at least in the beginning.”
A pensive smile softened her features. “I loved it here, too. I’d been brought up a city girl, but there was something about the rolling hills and the fresh air and the close-knit community I found appealing.”
“A blessing and a curse,” Abby volunteered.
Libby’s smile held a touch of irony. “You’re right, of course. I had no idea in the beginning that that closeness could also be a detriment, since it was next to impossible to keep a secret for long.”
She looked at Caleb. “When I came to town, Sarah Davis—Sarah VanSickle now—and Lucas were expected to marry, though there had been no formal announcement.”
Gabe and Caleb shared a look of disbelief.
“When it became apparent that he was interested in me, she was furious,” Libby said. “He ended things with her, and for the remainder of my visit, he pursued me rather intensely.”
“I don’t doubt that,” Caleb said with barely concealed hostility. “Once he got hold of an idea, he didn’t let it go.”
“No,” Libby said, “he didn’t. The night before we were to go back to Boston, he proposed, and I said yes. My parents were unhappy that things had moved so fast, and my father was...oh, I don’t know... There was something about Lucas he just didn’t trust. But I was marrying age, so they agreed. They delayed their return for two weeks until we could put together a small wedding that was fancy enough to satisfy my mother.”
She drew in a deep breath. “Lucas was like a chameleon, able to adapt to a situation with very little effort. He became whatever he needed to be to get what he wanted, and then he changed into something...someone else. Once he had me, it was off to the next item on his list. At first he was generous with everything but his time, but it didn’t take long for me to realize how he used his generosity for control.”
She looked from one of her boys to the other. “I know what you’re wondering, but he was never abusive, at least not in the beginning.”
Caleb’s face looked like a thundercloud. “Are you saying he hit you?”
She reached out and patted his hand. “No, nothing like that. But abuse can take many forms. You came along ten months after the wedding and Gabe four years after that. You boys gave me a reason to get up every morning. You helped fill the lonely hours that being alone so much created.
“Lucas was too busy making a name to have time for us. He was either working or off trying to buy more cattle or land—anything to make more money or gain an edge. He thrived on the power it afforded him. When I look back now, I see that his being away so much was really a blessing of sorts.”
“He did like having people in his debt and kowtowing to him,” Caleb said. “I remember that.”
“Yes,” Libby said. “He took us to Boston for a visit once, but he refused to go again, saying that he could have bought another parcel of land for what the visit cost. He wouldn’t let me go alone with you boys, claiming it would be too hard on me.
“He became quite miserly, too. The three of us dressed like peasants except when he wanted to show us off, and he went around on a prize stallion decked out in the latest and finest so that he would look more impressive for his wheeling and dealing.”
“Did Grandmother and Grandfather Harcourt know how things were?” Blythe asked her mother, clearly stunned by her mother’s confession.
“I never told them, but I think they suspected. They came as often as they could, but it wasn’t enough. I have to say the church was a big support, but I’d been taught not to air my dirty laundry, and besides, it was too embarrassing. I didn’t want anyone suspecting what my life was really like, and I don’t think Lucas would have taken kindly to my exposing his true colors to the world.”
“He sounds like a terrible person,” Abby said, scooting closer to Caleb and taking his hand.
“It sounds as if terrible doesn’t begin to cover it,” Win added.
“All I can say is that money and power became his gods.” She sniffed and continued. “One autumn when you boys were three and seven my parents came to visit and brought along my older brother, Tad, his wife, Ada, and her brother, who just happened to be Sam Granville.”
A collective gasp filled the room, and Libby offered a wan smile. “Sam’s wife had died a couple of years earlier, and he was left with his two boys, Win and Philip. Sam was handsome and funny, and he made me laugh....”
Gabe and Caleb exchanged troubled looks but did not interrupt. Blythe’s face wore a reminiscent smile, no doubt remembering her father.
“Lucas was jealous, though I’m not sure why, since by this time, our marriage was over in every way that mattered. The old dog-in-a-manger adage, I suppose. We lived in the same house. I cooked, took care of everyone, and he made more money and gathered more...of everything.
“One night Tad, Ada, Sam and I went for a walk down
by the creek while my parents kept an eye on you boys. Lucas had gone somewhere and hadn’t bothered returning for supper. We were walking back, and it was getting chilly. Tad and Ada hurried home, but Sam and I dragged behind, talking about plays and art and music...”
Her voice trailed away and she looked at her sons again. “As much as I loved you, it was nice to have a bit of time free of responsibility and to be able to carry on a conversation about things outside this house, this town. When I mentioned being chilly, he took off his jacket and put it around me, and there was one of those moments that seem—” she shrugged “—suspended in time.”
A muscle in Gabe’s cheek worked. He wanted to ask if Sam Granville had kissed her, but before he could say anything, Libby’s control broke and tears began to slide down her cheeks.
“At precisely that moment, your father came thundering out of the woods on that demon horse of his. The timing was so perfect I always wondered if he’d been watching and waiting for just a moment like that.
“I want you to know that Sam didn’t kiss me. I took my marriage vows too seriously. I would never have let him even if Lucas hadn’t arrived when he did.” She swiped at her eyes and blinked fast. “Of course, Lucas was furious. He got off the horse and...said a lot of terrible things to me and to Sam...accusing us of things I would never do. And then he hit him and hit him and—”
“Enough!” Gabe commanded. His stomach churned at the images filling his mind. He didn’t need to hear any more. Frank had told Caleb that Lucas had almost killed the man he’d suspected his wife of cheating with. There was no need for a blow-by-blow description.
She nodded. “It was months before he healed,” Libby said, “and even then, he never walked quite the same. Some injury to his spine, I suspect. His last few years were spent in a wheelchair.”
Despite the pain of what he’d thought was her rejection, despite the troubled years, Gabe believed her, and if the expression on Caleb’s face was anything to go by, so did his brother. But whether or not he believed her, Gabe’s behavior left him in no position to cast stones.
His mother had wanted to make things up to him and Caleb, just as he’d wanted to make things right with Caleb and Rachel. She’d taken that all-important first step, and it was up to him to meet her halfway.
Standing, he reached out and drew her to her feet and into his arms in an awkward gesture of comfort. He heard her sob and felt her arms close around his middle, felt her press her cheek against his shirtfront and her tears wet the fabric.
Fighting the emotion thickening his own throat, he whispered senseless, meaningless words of comfort and crooned soft soothing sounds. It was a language universal in origin, one that God Himself had designed for the hearts and minds and lips of mothers. They were tender words and gentle murmurs passed down from generation to generation, a distinctive means of communication that some few men—those who did not consider themselves too manly for such nonsense—might awkwardly adopt for just such an occasion.
Blindly, Libby reached out an arm to Caleb, who rose and allowed her to draw him close. Gabe, who had never seen his brother shed a tear during their growing-up years, thought Caleb’s eyes looked overbright.
After a few moments, she pulled back, gathering herself and her emotions. He remembered that about her, too. Libby Gentry seldom got emotional, but when she did, she masked it as soon as possible. At one time or another they’d all learned that showing Lucas any weakness only made it easier for him to inflict more pain.
Taking the handkerchief Gabe offered, Libby wiped her eyes and waved them back to their chairs. “Sit please,” she urged. “There’s more.”
* * *
Rachel dressed for church, her stomach filling with butterflies at the thought of meeting Gabe’s mother for the first time. Facing a woman who had conversed with the child whose existence was proof of your disreputable past was not only nerve-racking, it filled Rachel with renewed shame.
She regarded herself in the mirror, her gaze fixed on the woman who stared back from its silvery depths. She wore a pale lavender dress with a white piqué V-shaped insert trimmed with purple piping. White cuffs and collar similarly trimmed finished the simple tailored dress that she felt befitted her station in town. She looked every bit the country doctor and nothing at all like the woman Libby Granville no doubt thought she was.
How her life had changed since she’d gone to Simon’s wagon and discovered her past lying bleeding inside! Until then, her days had been uncomplicated and fulfilling, though perhaps a bit uneventful. She’d seldom shared time with a man and often wondered if anyone would ever come along to town to capture her interest. When the sheriff arrived, she’d gotten her hopes up, but it hadn’t taken long for them to realize that there was not one spark of excitement when they were together.
Unlike the way the air fairly crackled when she was with Gabe.
He had only to enter a room and her lonely heart refused to listen to the sensible warnings of her head. She could not fault his behavior. He was everything a woman dreamed of in a man. Attentive. Caring. Helpful. Danny loved him with every fiber of his being, which should have been a consolation but in actuality frightened her for her son.
Gabe said he wasn’t going anywhere, but what if his business venture failed and he had to go somewhere else to make a living? What if he found no one in town to love and went to another city to find a bride? What if that wife didn’t care for Danny, or was jealous of their relationship? What if this unknown woman refused to live in the same town as the scarlet woman who would be a constant reminder of his past? Gabe might have to move, and Danny...
She shook her head in despair. It was an impossible situation, and she had no idea what to do about it. She’d asked God for His guidance, but He had given her no visible sign of what to do.
Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
The words from the sixth chapter of Matthew echoed in her head, derailing the troubling turn of her thoughts. She paused in the act of stabbing the filigreed hatpin through her hat and into her upswept hair, thinking about the real meaning of the familiar passage. It was one she often quoted—sometimes almost flippantly—when day-to-day concerns seemed to be piling up to insurmountable heights.
There was no reason to worry about the future, since no one had a guarantee of what the next moment might bring, as Caleb had found out when what should have been the joyous occasion of his daughter’s birth was mitigated by his wife’s death.
Rachel told herself that she believed the Lord was with her no matter what, but she wondered if her life reflected that belief. Strong-willed and fond of being in control, she found it hard to surrender her will to Him, often trying to solve problems herself without waiting to see what He had in mind.
It all came down to whether or not she believed that God was working His plan in her life, taking her down the road He wanted despite the times she wandered off track or willfully chose to walk away from Him, determined to do it her way. Did she believe He was all-powerful, able to make adjustments to counteract her wrong moves?
If she didn’t, she should.
She closed her eyes, a prayer of sorrow and supplication for a greater understanding and a stronger faith filling her mind. When she was finished, she had accepted that no amount of worry would change His plan. The best way to deal with the evils of life was one day at a time.
* * *
As soon as Rachel stepped through the doorway of the church, Gabe took her by the elbow. “I need to talk to you.”
The weariness she saw in his eyes spoke of a sleepless night and suggested he’d learned something about his mother’s leaving he hadn’t known before, something he was having trouble coming to terms with even twelve hours later.
“Danny, will you please help Pops get settled?” she asked, not wanting little ears to hear whatever it was Gabe needed to tell her. Whe
n they’d gone, she looked around at the stream of arrivals.
“It’s getting pretty crowded in here,” she whispered, looking around at the knots of people mingling around them. “And since you’re so sure you’ll be the top bidder for my box lunch, we can talk while we eat.”
Seeing his surprise, she realized that his thoughts were centered on something completely different. “Don’t tell me you forgot one of the biggest events of the year?”
“It’s been a peculiar couple of days,” he murmured, “and last night was...very enlightening to say the least, but it did fill in a lot of blanks for both me and Caleb.”
“What is it?” she asked sotto voce, intrigued in spite of herself.
Gabe lowered his voice. “Libby didn’t have the affair—Lucas did.”
* * *
With her mind still reeling from Gabe’s pronouncement, Rachel passed down the aisle and took her seat in the pew next to her father. She’d been there no more than a moment when a soft hum rippled through the gathering, and heads began to turn toward the back of the room.
Despite her reluctance to meet her, Rachel felt a surge of sympathy for Libby Granville. Perhaps more than anyone else, Rachel understood what Libby must be suffering. She recalled her own experience—the thudding heart, trembling hands and nausea that had churned inside her, the same nausea that was no doubt roiling inside Gabe’s mother as she made her way toward the pew where her family was seated.
The service passed by in a haze and was over before Rachel knew it. There was a mass exodus as everyone hurried to fetch their boxes or baskets before heading to Jacksons’ Grove. Rachel saw to it that Danny and Edward and his chair were settled in the preacher’s wagon before driving to the house and collecting her own basket.
There was plenty of time for catching up with friends and neighbors and lots of lemonade and fruit punch to drink during the time it took for everyone to arrive. The air was filled with the shouts and laughter of happy children and the hum of dozens of conversations. At day’s end, everyone would go home filled with good food and new memories.
Wolf Creek Homecoming Page 17
