As they got up, they realized in the confusion that Dinky had escaped.
Aedan went to go run after him, but Gwyneth caught him. “He doesn’t have anywhere to go; and now that we know where the still is, we can stop his supply.”
They didn’t have time the next day to go to find the still. Pastor Stone was visiting Wildcat Ridge and he made a stop at Gwyneth’s house on the hill.
“She sure is a beautiful thing. Babies are God’s way of telling us to go on.” The pastor was sipping tea and holding Joy in the crook of his arm. She was sound asleep.
“Thank you,” Gwyneth replied. “Would you like more tea?”
“No, no. I’m good. I was just stopping by on my way home to see if I could pick up any more meat and fish from you. It would save you making a trip next week.”
“Aedan is out with the boys checking the fish traps right now. I do have some smoked trout and white fish. We have grouse and wild turkey. Oh, and a mule deer. Will that work this go around?”
“Sounds absolutely heavenly.”
“I’ll have the boys load your wagon when they get back. May I ask what you do with all that meat?”
“What I don’t use myself I give to my parishioners that need food. Jesus said to take care of his lambs. I know he meant spiritually, but next to heavenly manna, a good piece of meat serves just as well.”
Gwyneth tried to stifle a sniffle. The Pastor was doing good for his flock and she was thinking about the lack in her life. She should be more grateful. Perhaps she could talk to the Pastor about her current circumstances.
“May I discuss something with you? I need an outsider’s take on it.”
“Of course, my child.”
Gwyneth took a deep breath and told him all about her marriage with Clint; gaining then losing the contract for providing meat to Wildcat Ridge; Mortimer threatening her if she didn’t marry one of his men. How Aedan came to be with them and his memory loss; and the caper with the still from the previous evening. “And on top of all this, he wants to marry me,” she ended with a wail.
Pastor Stone laughed, then looked chagrined. “I wasn’t laughing at your story, but at the fact that you were lamenting how poorly your previous husband treated you…”
“Abused me. He was mean and vindictive.”
“My apologies; abused you. And now you have a man who thinks the sun rises and sets around you and those boys and you are doubting him? Did you ever think that this was to build your testimony? We have women whose husbands beat them in Curdy’s Creek. I can only do so much. These women think they are all alone. But you speaking out could help them. And help the women here in Wildcat Ridge too. They are hurting; not from being beaten, but from being beaten down. And I say, yes, marry this young man who thinks so highly of you. You can get it annulled if you find out new information.”
“Can you do it once they return?”
“I’d be delighted. I don’t have my ledger with me, but you can sign it the next time you are in Curdy’s Crossing. But it will be official just the same.”
“Can I ask you one more favor?”
“If I can help, I certainly will.”
“Does Curdy’s Creek have an attorney?”
“What do you need a lawyer for?”
“Once we are married, we would like to adopt the boys as our own.”
Pastor Stone laughed with delight. “Yes, I can most certainly help with that.”
The ceremony was complete less than 15 minutes after Aedan and the boys walked through the door. Gwyneth didn’t make them change, but she did make them wash their hands.
It was the most unique ceremony, a visiting preacher, a nervous bride, a baby swaddled up on the papoose board and the groom and three boys smelling like fish. It didn’t matter to Gwyneth. She was so happy to begin life officially with her new family.
“You may kiss your bride,” the pastor said, closing the bible.
Aedan leaned closer and cupped Gwyneth’s face in his hands. “Grá Geal Mo Chroím, Gwyn.” Gwyneth’s eyes flew open as his head leaned closer. He just called her the bright love of his heart.
His kiss was the gentlest thing she had ever known. It was like a thousand butterflies landed on her lips and were fluttering their wings. She didn’t want it to end, but he pulled away too quickly.
“Does this mean you are our Ma and Pa now?”
“Yes, Jess. We would love to be your Ma and Pa. And yours Arnold, and yours too, Harley.”
The boys came and were gathered in Gwyneth’s and Aedan’s embrace.
“Mighty fine family,” the pastor said, looking at them. “Mighty fine.”
Chapter Eight
Gwyneth was happily humming to herself. After supper, her husband and children were going to take a hike up to the old line-cabins that Clint had in the hills. Husband and children. Just the words filled her with joy.
Aedan and the boys had gone to check the traps and snares and she had put Joy down for a nap, so she was alone in the kitchen preparing fried chicken for when they returned. It was one of the boys’ favorites. She swore, Harley would have it for every meal if he could.
She had just removed the last of the chicken from the oil and placed them on a plate. She then moved the pan to the back of the stove. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. She wasn’t expecting anyone.
She wiped her hands on the towel around her waist and walked to the door, cautiously opening it. As the door widened, the man pushed his way inside, almost knocking her to the ground. It was Mortimer. With the excitement of getting married yesterday, Gwyneth had completely forgotten about Mortimer and his men.
“Where is it?” he shrieked at her.
Gwyneth turned towards him, looking at his appearance. He was sweaty and unkept, which was completely unlike him. His eyes were bloodshot, like he hadn’t been sleeping in days. He looked like a cornered wild animal. Gwyneth could feel her heart starting to pound in her chest, not knowing what he was capable of. “What are you referring to?” she asked cautiously. She knew that with Mortimer, it could be anything.
“The still. I know you are making liquor.”
Gwyneth tried to act unsuspicious. “I don’t know what you are talking about,” she said, as she tried to walk past him.
Mortimer grabbed her arm and brought her around to him. As she turned, she noticed that Mortimer was not alone; two large men had walked into her house. They looked menacing, with their hands on their side arms.
“Don’t lie to me, woman. I met Dinky in the town square the other day; he was drunk out of his mind. That means that he must be getting his supply from somewhere and I know it’s not from my stash.”
There was the rub. Mortimer was losing money if Dinky was sharing what he was making with the others in town.
Gwyneth tried to pull her arm from his grasp, but he had dug his fingers into her flesh. She yelped as she could feel his fingers make indentions into her arm. “You are mistaken; if he has the liquor, it has nothing to do with me. But he did stop by here yesterday.”
“He did?” Mortimer’s interest was piqued.
“Yes. He came by last night because he wanted to get the jars for the liquor. He must know where the still is.”
“Well, where is it?”
“All he said was it was up in the mountains.”
“Where?”
“I’m not sure.”
Mortimer laughed, the sound sending tremors down Gwyneth’s back.
“You think I believe you? You stupid woman. I knew you were trouble from the start. I only wanted this land to find that still and destroy it. You should have just taken one of the men who came to court you and moved to Cranesville. You could have had a wonderful life; been taken care of by a decent man, but no. You had to go and spoil everything. Now, you are more trouble than you are worth.” Mortimer pulled her with surprising strength towards him and then threw her towards the men. They grabbed her, restraining her so she couldn’t move. “Now you leave me no choice but to get rid
of you.”
Gwyneth didn’t like his tone of voice, as he motioned for the door. “What are you doing?” she cried.
“I gave you many chances to fix your circumstances,” answered Mortimer. “And you refused. You could have had an easy life, but you threw away your chances.”
As Gwyneth started to be dragged to the wagon she saw he had brought to the house, she kicked and screamed. She threw her arms out, grabbing handfuls of one of the man’s arm flesh and digging her nails in. He yelped, dropping her. The move was so sudden that the other man holding her released his grip as well. She started to run away from the house, down the small hill towards the creek.
“You fools! Go after her,” Mortimer screamed. She could hear the two men behind her, but took no chances to look behind her. She just kept running down the path. She wasn’t paying attention to where she was going and ran into something hard. She looked up and saw that she had run into Aedan. He held her sides to steady her. “What’s wrong?” he asked, bringing his hand to her cheek. She didn’t know what to say, as she burst into tears.
She heard the rustling behind her. She buried her face into his chest, clutching at him, until his arm enveloped her. “Who are you?” she heard Aedan ask one of the men that burst through the bushes.
There was a laugh, as she heard Mortimer follow behind the men. Aedan pushed her behind him so he was facing the men and Mortimer.
“You!” Mortimer said. “You are still here?”
The boys came up from the creek, the string of fish in their hands. When they saw what was happening, they dropped the fish and ran to join Aedan. There was now a barrier of her husband and the three boys between her and Mortimer and his men. “I’m going to ask you one more time. Who are these men and why are they chasing my wife? What are you doing on our property?”
“Wife? Well that puts an interesting spin on things.” He looked at Gwyneth. “I guess you really needed a man warming your bed, didn’t you? How can you do that after all I’ve done for you. I sent my best men here to court you.”
“You haven’t done anything for me,” Gwyneth said, as she fought back the tears. She still felt scared for her life, but she wouldn’t let Mortimer insult her like that in front of her family. “Now, get off my property.”
Jess ran forward and kicked Mortimer in the shin. “Leave my ma alone!” he said before running back towards Aedan. Mortimer motioned to one of his men as he hopped on one foot holding his shin.
“It seems that you aren’t taking what Mr. Crane says seriously,” the man said.
Jess wasn’t fast enough. The movement was so quick, there was no time to react. The man took a huge step and grabbed Jess by the arm. He flung him back, bringing Jess to Mortimer’s side. Gwyneth lunged forward, trying to grab him, only to be pulled back by Arnold.
Jess was now crying, as Mortimer paced before them. “Show me where the still is, or I’m going to take this boy away. He’s the perfect size to work in the mine, don’t you think, boys?” he asked. “Small enough to squeeze into those small places.”
Gwyneth let out a small gasp, as she clutched Arnold close to her. “We don’t know where the still is. Maybe I can give you something else? There are bottles in the smokehouse. Take those and give Jess back.”
“You must take me for an idiot,” Mortimer yelled. “I know you know where the still is! Don’t lie to me!”
Aedan stepped towards them. “If we take you to the still, will you leave our family alone?” Gwyneth turned to Aedan, her mouth dropping open.
“I like you,” said Mortimer, walking towards Aedan. “You get right to the point.”
“I asked you a question,” Aedan answered, his voice as cold as steel.
Mortimer paused, as he pondered the statement. He nodded towards the man who was holding Jess hostage. The man threw Jess back to them, as Gwyneth grabbed him, hugging him to her. “Then take me to the still.”
Aedan walked up the hill. He was inwardly praying the still was exactly were Dinky had told them. Gwyneth was following them closely. Aedan had wanted her to stay with the boys back at the house with Joy, but she was stubborn and refused to let them go by themselves. She was probably afraid that Aedan wouldn’t make it back to her; in reality, he was just as afraid as her.
Mortimer made comments under his breath as they climbed up to the first line-cabin. He reminded Aedan of a small man who had a big personality – all noise and not able to do anything for himself.
Aedan could see how a bully could give off a persona that would make anyone want to do his bidding. It also helped that he had his henchmen doing most of his bidding. But Mortimer was still a bully. The two men were following closely behind them.
Gwyneth whispered to him, “What if we can’t find the still?” she asked. He knew she was afraid that Dinky was not truthful with where he said that the still was; plus there were at least five line-cabins that Gwyneth knew of, but she didn’t know if Clint had any more.
Aedan was more hopeful. “It’s going to be there,” he said, as he reached to squeeze her hand. “You have to have faith.” And that’s what Aedan was coasting on: faith. It was all he had. He knew there was a higher power at work. He had been thinking about that lately. Faith is what brought him to Gwyneth and the three boys; there must have been a reason that he was traveling near their home. And although he couldn’t remember anything from his past, he was starting to accept that it didn’t matter to him. He wanted to spend the rest of his time with Gwyneth and the children. They were everything that he knew he ever wanted.
“Are we almost there?” he heard Mortimer ask behind them.
Sensing the aggravation in his voice, Aedan answered. “Yes, it should be right around here,” he said, as he moved around a few trees. He heard a sigh of relief from Gwyneth as they looked and saw that there was the first line-cabin ahead of them. It was more like a shack. As they walked closer to it they saw it looked run down and weather beaten; if Aedan was riding in the forest, he would barely give it another look. He would think it was a remnant of a forgotten time. Maybe that was the point of it, so no one would think twice when they went past it.
They approached it apprehensively. Aedan wasn’t sure if Dinky had come back, armed and ready to take them out if they got close to it. He moved Gwyneth to hide behind him, as he crept up to the door. He pushed it open slowly, putting his hand to his back to feel the pistol he snuck out when they left the house as a precaution against Mortimer.
The door opened with a creak and they waited for anyone to make their presence known. When there was no movement, Aedan walked forward into the room, with Gwyneth following close behind. What greeted them was an open room, with a few bottles stacked to the side. It looked as if someone had been there and left in a hurry. From what Aedan could tell, there had been a still there, but now it was long gone, even before the explosion that killed Clint.
“This is what you brought me too?” Mortimer yelled, pushing Gwyneth out of the way, so he could walk closer to the center of the room. She fell into Aedan’s arms as Mortimer circled around them. “You promised me a still, and it’s not here.”
“There are at least four other cabins. We aren’t sure which one it is. Let’s move to the next one.”
The small party started walking towards the next ledge. There were just bits and pieces of what looked like a bootlegging operation, but no still to be found. When they finally got to the last cabin, Mortimer motioned for Gwyneth to go in first.
“I don’t see the still, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t here,” Gwyneth said returning to the outside.
Mortimer and Aedan went inside the small cabin.
“It was here,” said Aedan, as he motioned to the bottles around the room, and the dust that had been recently disturbed. “Dinky must have been here and moved it.”
“How am I to believe that you weren’t in on it being moved?” he said, as the two men started to walk towards them.
Aedan backed away from them, clutching Gwyneth.
“We can’t prove that we did; I didn’t know about the still until recently,” answered Gwyneth. “Clint kept it to himself. I knew he was making the liquor, but I thought it was a small operation. Nothing of this magnitude.”
Mortimer eyed them wearily. Aedan could see that he was tired and the whole effort was taking more energy than he should be devoting to it. “I should take you both and throw you into my mine until you tell me the truth.”
“We are!” Gwyneth cried.
“And even if you don’t believe us, I think this will be convincing,” he said as he pulled out the hidden pistol from his back. He pointed the gun at Mortimer as the two men backed up, drawing their weapons.
“Oh, boy, I see someone has come prepared,” said Mortimer with a laugh.
“I want you to leave us be,” he said, as he pointed the pistol from Mortimer to each of the men. “You are never to come back; do you hear me?”
“And what are you going to do?” Mortimer said, as he walked toward him. “Shoot me?”
“No. I’m going to shoot him.” It happened so quickly, Mortimer didn’t have time to react. Aedan pointed the gun towards the man on the right and fired, hitting him in the shoulder. The man yelped and clutched his shoulder as blood trickled down.
Mortimer turned to his bleeding henchman, as the other man went to help him. “I didn’t think you had it in you,” he said, as he turned back to Aedan.
“That was just a warning shot; next time, I won’t miss.”
Mortimer looked at him from top to bottom. “This is my last warning,” he said, as he turned back to the men. “If I find out that you have been lying and making more liquor, I will come back, and you don’t want that. We are finished!” He turned to the men and yelled for them to get out.
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