A Baby Between Them

by Winnie Griggs

  Cam, still barefoot, gave chase but Nora ignored both of them. Heart pounding like fists against her chest, breath catching in her throat, she raced toward the basket. Please, God, please, God, please—

  And there, her face scrunched up in a peevish grimace, lay Grace.

  Nora dropped to her knees and started laughing and crying at the same time. Her whole body was trembling so hard she barely trusted herself to pick Grace up, but she couldn’t hold back for long. With a cry, she lifted the squirming infant, hugging her against her chest, rocking back and forth. “Oh, my sweet, sweet girl, I was so worried, so scared I’d never see you again.” Then she held her away, anxiously studying her. “Are you truly okay, my sweet little one?”

  To her relief there were no signs of injuries. “Thank you, Heavenly Father. Oh, Grace, I promise I’m going to take such good care of you. You won’t—”

  Gavin appeared around the corner of the house just then, carrying a package wrapped in butcher paper. “Miss Nora, what are you—” Then he spotted Grace and his steps quickened. “Well, glory be! You found her. Is she okay?”

  Nora was still studying every inch of Grace in the increasing morning light. “She sounds hungry, but otherwise I think she’s fine.” Her nose twitched as Gavin neared and her mind registered that his package undoubtedly contained fish. Apparently the townsfolk were still sending food as tokens of support.

  Before she could inquire, though, angry squeals coming from the distance snagged her attention. In her joy at finding Grace she’d almost forgotten that Cam had given chase to the kidnapper. She turned to see him holding on to the arms of a twisting, kicking blonde whirlwind.

  “I’m coming!” As if suddenly realizing what was happening, Gavin dropped his package and sprinted toward the pair.

  Nora pulled Grace back against her chest. No one would take her little girl away from her again.

  “Praise God Almighty, is that really Grace?”

  Nora turned back toward the house to see James and Agnes standing on the back stoop. She stood, and started back toward the house. “Yes it is.”

  “But how…”

  “I’m not certain, but I think the kidnapper brought her back.” Nora tilted her head toward the three who were slowly moving toward them. “The sheriff and Gavin have her in custody.”

  “Oh my goodness.”

  Then Grace started crying in earnest. “I think she must be hungry.”

  “Well, of course she is.” James stepped down from the stoop and touched Grace’s cheek briefly with one work-roughened finger. “I’ll go right now and get a pail of fresh milk so you can feed her proper.”

  Nora saw the moisture in his eyes and smiled her thanks.

  “Let’s get her inside,” Agnes said. “I’ll get the stove warmed up and we’ll fix coffee for the menfolk.”

  Nora carried Grace into the kitchen, rocking her in her arms and crooning a lullaby. It was so good to feel that sweet weight in her arms again, to have that tiny heart beating against her own. She felt as if she would never let her go again.

  A moment later, Cam and Gavin escorted the disheveled and cowed-looking kidnapper as far as the kitchen stoop.

  “Do you mind if we come inside for a minute?” Cam asked through the open door.

  Why would he feel the need to ask? “Of course not. Come on inside.”

  “All three of us?”

  Oh, that was it. He was worried about her reaction to the girl. “Yes, of course. Agnes is working on getting breakfast ready.”

  Cam all but dragged the reluctant girl inside, while Gavin carefully guarded the rear, as if he expected the girl to somehow break away and make a run for it.

  But from the way she stood there, it appeared to Nora that there was no fight left in the girl.

  “Have a seat.” Cam led the girl to the table and pulled a chair out with his free hand. “I’m going to let go of you, but if you so much as make a move to get up, I’m going to get a rope and tie you down. Understand?”

  The girl nodded, her eyes downcast.

  “Now, let’s start with your name.”

  “Mollie Kerrigan.”

  Nora started at the sound of her voice. The girl was Irish—a recent immigrant from the sounds of her.

  “Well, Mollie,” Cam continued, “you’ve been causing quite a bit of trouble here the past few weeks. I’ve got a lot of questions for you. But we’re going to start with why you kidnapped Grace.”

  The girl didn’t say anything.

  Nora, feeling slightly more charitable now that Grace had been returned and had apparently suffered no ill effects, tried a softer tone. “Please, tell me why you took my baby.”

  The girl looked up finally and stared at Nora defiantly. “She’s not your baby.”

  Nora recoiled, clutching Grace tighter. “Of course she is. Or as close as makes no never mind.”

  “No, she’s not.” The girl’s chin lifted. “I know, because I’m her real mother.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Nora felt the blood drain from her face and had to sit down before her legs buckled. Mollie was lying. What she said was impossible.

  Cam moved to stand behind her and she looked up, searching for his gaze. She wanted to protest, to restate her own claim on the baby, but her mouth refused to form any words.

  He gave her shoulder a light squeeze, then turned back to the girl. But his hand stayed where it was, lightly resting on her shoulder.

  “You have any proof of that?” he asked.

  “Only my word.” Mollie must have realized how empty that sounded to the rest of them, because she tried again. “I had the baby aboard the Annie McGee just one day out from port. I wrapped her in a scrap of gray wool and left her between sacks of oatmeal in the kitchen’s storage room because it was warm and dry there, and because I knew there was a woman who’d come by soon to find her. I didn’t want a man to find her.”

  Nora finally found her voice. “Anyone who was on board the ship could know all that. It doesn’t prove you’re the mother.”

  Mollie faced Nora defiantly. “She has a small birthmark on her back just below her left shoulder. Other than that, she’s absolutely perfect.”

  Cam turned to meet her gaze, a question in his eyes. Nora nodded, reluctantly acknowledging the truth of what Mollie had said. Then she turned back to the girl, still not ready to believe her claim. “You’ve had her for the past few days, so of course you know about the birthmark.”

  The girl’s lips pinched together. “When I placed her in the storeroom, I made her a pallet out of an empty flour sack and an old apron that I found hanging on a peg by the door. The apron was folded in quarters.”

  Nora’s doubts were starting to fade and she was grateful for the warmth of Cam’s hand on her shoulder. “If you’re truly her mother, why did you abandon her?”

  The air of defiance sloughed away, replaced by drooping shoulders and downcast eyes. “Because I was alone, and scared, and didn’t know what else to do.”

  Cam cleared his throat. “Where is Grace’s father?”

  Mollie’s face turned scarlet and she didn’t say anything for a long moment. “We were planning to run away to America together as soon as we could earn enough money for our passage.” Her voice wavered. “But when Elden—that’s his name—found out I was going to have a baby, he ran off without me.”

  Nora felt her heart stir in spite of herself. To be abandoned like that, just when Mollie would need her husband the most, must have been a terrible blow.

  “So you got on that ship to follow your husband to America?” Cam asked.

  If anything, her face grew redder. “Elden’s not exactly my husband. He never married me like he promised he would when we ran away together.”

  Nora heard a gasp but wasn’t quite certain who it came from.

  “I loved him,” Mollie said defiantly. “My parents are dead and my grandmother hates me. But Elden was really nice to me, kind and caring. At least at first. And he promised if
I came with him we would have wonderful adventures together.” She rubbed her arms. “I thought he loved me.”

  She looked so forlorn, so lost, Nora had to hold herself back from offering a hug.

  “And yes, I stowed away on the Annie McGee because I wanted to follow him here.” Mollie seemed unable to stop talking now that she’d started. “And I gave my little girl away because I thought if the baby wasn’t around, maybe Elden would want me again. Besides, I knew I couldn’t take care of her myself and she’d have a better life with someone who could.”

  Mollie cast a longing glance Grace’s way before lowering her gaze again.

  “But I couldn’t seem to put her out of my mind like I thought I could. It wasn’t long before I realized what a fool I’d been to give up my precious baby for a faithless man.”

  Nora tried not to let the girl’s story touch her. “You could have come forward and claimed her at any time before we docked.”

  The girl’s shoulders drooped further. “I had nothing to offer her. I was stealing whatever scraps of food I could find just to survive, which meant I went to bed hungry most nights. And I was a stowaway. If I’d come forward there’s no telling what the captain would have done to me.”

  Nora had a feeling Captain Conley would have been more understanding than Mollie feared but there was no point saying that now.

  “I truly planned to leave her in your care. I could tell that you and your sisters were fond of her and you had more to offer her than I did.”

  Nora was still trying to find some hole in the girl’s story. “So why did you follow us to Faith Glen?”

  “I just wanted to make certain my little girl would truly be okay. That was all I planned to do, honest, and then I intended to go away and never bother you again.”

  She met Nora’s gaze with eyes that begged her to understand. “But I couldn’t make myself leave. The more I saw of my baby, the more I wanted to be with her. And besides, I didn’t really have anywhere else to go.”

  Nora wanted to yell that Grace was not her baby, but the tense, uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach mocked that assertion. Instead she pushed harder on the other points. “So rather than coming to me, you just snuck in and took her out of my home, leaving me to worry about Grace until I was nearly sick with it.”

  “I didn’t mean to. I knew the sheriff was looking for me and that it was only a matter of time until he found me. So I planned to leave.”

  Cam had been looking for her? Nora swung her gaze around to his and saw the truth of that in his face. Why hadn’t he said something?

  From the corner of her eye she saw James slip inside with a pail of milk and basket of eggs. She started to get up, then saw Agnes reach for the bottle. Grateful, she settled back in her chair and returned her focus to the conversation around the table.

  “I couldn’t leave, though,” Mollie was saying, “without getting one last look at her. Then I saw you,” she nodded toward Nora, “leave the baby all alone in the kitchen and I realized I could get a closer look, maybe even touch her cheek, kiss her forehead, say goodbye proper-like.”

  Cam must have realized the guilt she felt at Mollie’s words because he gave her shoulder another gentle squeeze.

  “But you didn’t just look.” Nora couldn’t control the accusatory tone that colored her words.

  “I didn’t plan to take her, truly. She started fussing and I picked her up just to quiet her. It was the first time I’d held her since the day she was born. She was so small and perfect, and when I held her she stopped crying and smiled at me. Just like that, something came over me, all of a sudden like. The next thing I knew I was running out of the house with my baby in my arms.”

  Nora tried again to tamp down any softer feelings toward this girl who had claim to her baby. “Her name is Grace.”

  “That’s a very nice name.” Mollie looked up again. “I know it was an awful thing to do, especially since you’ve been so good to her and all. I know you must have been worried something awful, and I’m really, truly sorry for that. But she’s my baby and I wanted her with me.”

  You can’t have her. “But you brought her back.”

  “After I stopped running, I realized I’d made a terrible mistake. Much as I wanted her with me, I knew I couldn’t take care of her. I tried, but truth is I can hardly fend for myself. I want better for her than that. I want her to have the kind of life someone like you can give her.”

  The girl turned to Cam. “What do you plan to do to me?”

  Cam dropped his hand from Nora’s shoulder and she wanted to protest. Instead she hugged Grace closer.

  “By your own admission, you’re a stowaway, a thief and a kidnapper.” Cam’s voice held an authoritative, no-nonsense edge. “I’ll have to arrest you.”

  Mollie nodded, seeming resigned to her fate. “I thought so.”

  Cam turned to Gavin. “Head back to town and let the other searchers know we’ve found Grace and there’s no need to keep looking. Let Ben know exactly what’s happened and to get the cell ready for a prisoner.” He glanced Nora’s way. “I’ll borrow your wagon, if that’s okay, to transport her into town.”

  Gavin nodded and headed for the door.

  Agnes, who’d been working at the stove while the discussion with Mollie was going on, handed Nora the baby bottle and turned to Cam. “Before you leave I insist you eat breakfast. No point in all this food I’ve cooked going to waste.”

  While the others ate the eggs and ham Agnes had prepared, Nora gave Grace her bottle. The little girl sucked at it greedily, obviously more than ready for her feeding. Had Mollie fed her much at all?

  Mollie dug into her plate of food with nearly as much enthusiasm. It was likely the first decent meal she’d had in quite some time. Nora also noticed her slipping glances Grace’s way throughout the meal.

  “Just out of curiosity,” Cam asked, “where did you hide out?”

  Mollie stopped eating long enough to answer his question. “There’s an abandoned shack out in the woods about a half mile south of town. It’s not much but it had a roof and four walls to keep the weather and the wildlife out.”

  Cam nodded. “I know the place—Lem Grady and his boys were supposed to check it out first thing yesterday morning.”

  “They did. I hid and watched them go over every corner of it. Then as soon as they left, I figured it would be safe to hide out there for a while.”

  Mollie seemed proud of her cleverness and Nora had to admit she seemed to have a good head on her shoulders, in a cunning, not-quite-trustworthy sort of way.

  Once the meal was over, James volunteered to hitch the wagon. Agnes offered to hold Grace while Nora ate, but Nora turned her down. As foolish as she knew it was, she couldn’t bring herself to physically let go of Grace until Mollie was out of the house.

  Once breakfast was over, she followed Cam and Mollie as they headed outside. The three of them walked in silence until they reached the wagon and then Cam turned to her. She hadn’t had a chance to say anything to him since he’d captured Mollie, and suddenly words failed her. A simple thank-you seemed inadequate for all he’d done, yet right now they were the only words she could muster. “Thank you. For everything.”

  “Just doing my job.” But his eyes told her a different story. Then he touched her arm. “You’ve been through a lot these past few days. I don’t expect you to come in for work anytime soon. Take as much time as you need.”

  “I appreciate the offer, but I’ll be there tomorrow.” She jiggled Grace. “We both will.”

  He appeared ready to say more, but then seemed to think better of it. Instead he nodded and turned to hand Mollie up onto the wagon seat. When he turned back to Nora he smiled. “Thanks again for the use of your wagon. I’ll bring it back later today after I get our prisoner settled in.”

  Nora nodded, trying to sort through the emotions swirling inside her. She’d sort through her feelings for Cam later.

  As for Mollie…

  Part of her
wanted to dislike this girl who had caused her so much anguish, and who had the potential to cause so much more. But the other part of her felt a stirring of unwanted sympathy for everything she had endured.

  A moment later she watched Cam head the wagon toward town, and let out a deep, shuddering breath, releasing her ambivalent emotions with it. For now, at least, she would ignore everything but her joy at the miracle of having Grace back, safe and sound.

  The rest could be sorted out later.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Nora spent most of the morning fussing over Grace. She bathed her and put a fresh gown on her. She cooed over her, crooned to her and examined her multiple times for any signs of injury she might have missed. Even when Grace took her nap, Nora hovered over her cradle, watching her sleep.

  Near noon, Cam returned with the wagon. He helped James unhitch the horse, then joined Nora and Agnes in the house.

  “Lunch will be ready in another thirty minutes or so,” Nora said by way of greeting. “Would you care to join us?” She felt unaccountably shy, as if something in their relationship had shifted these past few days. Would it return to normal soon? Did she want it to?

  He grinned, apparently feeling none of her ambivalence. “My timing was in no way accidental. I was hoping for an invitation.” He glanced toward the cradle. “How’s Grace?”

  Nora beamed. “She’s fine. In fact she doesn’t seem to have suffered any ill effects at all.” Then she asked a question of her own. “Is your prisoner settled in?”

  “As much as can be expected.”

  He didn’t sound particularly pleased. “Is something wrong?”

  He waved a hand. “I’ve been dealing with gawkers most of the morning. Ever since I brought Mollie in, no fewer than two dozen townsfolk have made excuses to stop by. It seems everyone wants to get a look at the female kidnapper who caused all the fuss the past few days.”