Katie's Maverick (Strasburg: The New Generation Book 2)

by Pippa Greathouse

  She chewed on her lower lip, frowning. "All right."

  It was almost noon before he escorted her to the basement, and the ladies sitting on their cots applauded when they saw her arrive on Nick's arm.

  She curtsied and greeted them happily, going into the kitchen to see what the ladies were cooking. Betsy took out a spoon and gave her a taste of the chicken and dumplings. When she looked back toward Nick, he was sitting on the edge of the stairs, talking with the older of the Wilder sisters. He glanced up and met her eyes with a wink.

  "I saw that," Grandmother Marilyn said. "There's no doubt of his affections for you, Katie."

  Katie's eyes twinkled. "I'm pretty fond of him, too."

  "I can tell. So, when is the big day?"

  Katie leaned up on tiptoe and whispered into her ear, "The twenty-third."

  "Of December? That's two weeks from tomorrow. What's your mother going to say? There will be so much to do!"

  A deep breath, Katie, she told herself. "Actually, I think it should be kept simple. I'd be happy if it was in Father Michael's office."

  "Katie! You're not serious."

  "But I am. Entirely."

  "Oh, my. But your mother will be distraught if you were to do it that way. I'll have to help her. There's so much to be done before then. Food, cake, invitations, your gown!" She looked horrified. "Where will you live?"

  "I don't care. It doesn't matter, as long—"

  "She doesn't care." Grandmother Marilyn rolled her eyes Heavenward. "Do you hear that, Cinderella? She doesn't care."

  "I heard." Mrs. Andrews was grinning. "When Henson and I married, I wouldn't have cared if we lived in a tent outside town. The dumplings are ready. We need to begin passing the food out."

  "Let me help." Katie went to the basin to wash her good hand and dried it. "Hand me a bowl."

  "Katie." Cinderella appeared skeptical. "I don't think—"

  "My left wrist isn't broken, Mrs. Andrews. It's my right. Please let me help?"

  Mrs. Andrews glanced across the room at Nick, who met her gaze, as if asking permission. He glanced toward Katie, frowning, but a moment later, nodded. Katie started toward the right and took one bowl at a time out to the little ladies. They were gracious and extremely thankful for the dishes she brought out. Cinderella followed, bringing out cups and saucers filled with hot tea. The younger ladies from the dormitory had lined up to get their own, Phebe among them.

  A few minutes later, she took a bowl to Nick and then went to sit down next to Mrs. Billings, on her cot. The old woman gave her a toothy grin and nodded at something across the room.

  For the first time, Katie noticed that Phebe's cot had been moved into the corner, with other cots all around hers. She was effectively blocked in. Katie looked away, trying not to laugh.

  "Somebody should have put her in the corner a long time ago," Mrs. Billings whispered, looking pleased with herself. "Spoilt brat."

  Katie couldn't help it, a musical tinkling laugh escaped at Mrs. Billing's words.

  Louisa Graham joined them, on the other side. "Katie, I don't know if Mrs. Billings has told you yet, but we've asked her to come live in the dormitory with us. We have an extra bed, and we could put her right next to the hearth."

  An eager gasp escaped. "Really? That's wonderful."

  "I'm thinking it over." Mrs. Billings nodded. "Haven't decided, mind you, but it does sound appealing. My place gets quiet. Too quiet. And since I'm too old to get out much, it's lonely there. It'd be nice to have lots of chattering going on around me again. Haven't enjoyed that since my own children were small."

  "Where are your children, Mrs. Billings?"

  "They're scattered about. Leesburg, Halifax, Baltimore. They've all asked me to come live with them, but they have their own families now. And Strasburg is home to me."

  "Then it's settled?" Louisa's voice was pleading. "You'll come?"

  A smile spread across the woman's wrinkled but beautiful face. "It's settled." She leaned forward. "Long as you keep that Miss Watson in the corner like she is now."

  "I don't think Miss Watson will be a problem much longer," Louisa whispered. "I've already told her to find another place to live. I saw what happened the day Katie was hurt."

  "Maybe she can move into my place," Mrs. Billings winked. "A bit drafty, but she deserves that."

  The Wilder sisters were standing over them now. Eleanor and Audra were beaming proudly. "We heard, Miss Katie. About the wedding. Didn't we, Audra?"

  "Indeed, we did," Audra's head bobbed up and down as she spoke. "We're so happy for you. The twenty-third, you say?"

  Puzzled, Katie peeked over at Nick, who had his pocket watch out and was pointing at it, indicating it was time to go back up. How had the Wilder sisters heard about their wedding?

  "Um, yes, ma'am."

  "Oh, such a romantic time of the year. Right before Christmas! Anything we can do, dear, please let us know?"

  A further glance toward Nick indicated he was ready to take her back upstairs, and she rose to take her empty bowl back toward the kitchen. "Yes, ma'am, thank you so much. I'd better go. Nick looks as if he's ready to go back upstairs," she said softly.

  He held out a hand toward her and she moved across to meet him at the staircase. When she looked back, the Wilder sisters were stopping at each cot, offering to take the empty bowls back to the kitchen.

  "Nick, did you tell the sisters about our wedding date? They mentioned it to me."

  He looked at her oddly. "No. I thought perhaps you did. They seem to know everything that goes on around here. But look. They each seem so eager to help out."

  "Yes. I actually find I really like them, Nick."

  "So do I, sweetheart. You look tired. I think you could use a nap. For that matter, so could I."

  Lies and more lies

  The light was growing dim when she awakened. She didn't see Nick anywhere. The door to Father Michael's office was closed, and Gleason was asleep.

  Struggling, she sat up on the side of her cot and shook her head, trying to awaken. Where was Nick? She hesitated to knock on Father's door. He was probably praying. Glad she had her boots on, she stood up.

  "Gleason?" she said softly. "Have you seen Nick?"

  He blinked at her sleepily. "No. Perhaps he's downstairs?"

  She nodded. Walking toward the stairs, she started down slowly. When she reached the bottom, she scanned the room. Many of the ladies were napping. She could see Mrs. Andrews and Grandmother in the kitchen, working away. Miss Betsy was there, too. Louisa was lying on her cot with her eyes closed.

  She blinked. Miss Watson's cot was empty.

  She frowned as she heard the door to the bath open. Her nemesis caught sight of her and moved toward her. Katie turned and moved up the stairs, toward the landing.

  "I had an interesting discussion with Nicholas, a few moments ago." Phebe's voice was just paces behind her, and she stopped. Slowly, she turned.

  "The others think I came to apologize. But I decided if I couldn't have him, you couldn't, either."

  Katie was glaring now. She tried to appear unperturbed, but her uninjured hand was clenching in her dress; even her hand above the broken wrist was tensing, and it hurt. "What are you talking about?"

  Phebe hissed. "He came to the back steps to shovel off the snow, and the door opened." She folded her arms across her chest, a smug expression on her face. "I told him."

  Don't talk to her, Katie thought. She's just trying to stir something up. She considered turning away, but she couldn't stop herself from responding. "You told him what?"

  "I told him you thought he'd left you, and you ran off after him in the snow to look for him, in a fit of anxiety. He left out the back way, to find you."

  Katie's eyes narrowed. "You're lying."

  "Perhaps." Phebe's voice sounded sly. Her eyes were narrowed and her smile hard. "Perhaps not. I told him you feared terribly for him. He must have believed me. He took off like a bat out of Hades."

  Katie's
mouth was tight. "I don't believe you," she said again. "Nick wouldn't believe that, either."

  Phebe's shrill laugh followed her up the steps as she moved quickly toward the top. "Don't forget to wrap up, Katie. It's snowing again."

  Don't believe her. Katie reached the top of the steps, leaving an arrogant Phebe Watson down at the bottom. Was it possible? Surely, Nick wouldn't have believed she'd taken off in the snow, would he?

  But in the back of her mind, she pictured the day she'd left the room at the inn in Cooksville, and again the Saturday after the ball, when she'd taken off on Flame in the face of the storm.

  Oh, dear God, what if he did believe it. Why wouldn't he?

  She moved quickly to Father Michael's office, listening outside the door for sounds of conversation but was met with only the priest's voice, in prayer. She ran toward the back of the sanctuary toward the street and looked out the window. Phebe was right about one thing. It was snowing heavily.

  She grabbed her cloak, struggling with it to put it on with only one arm and, thankful she was wearing her boots, closed the door behind her and ran down the steps to the walk.

  "Nick?" she called out. Looking both ways, she saw no signs of him. Lanterns in several of the houses were being lit, to ward away the coming darkness, and she called out again. The wind was not terrible, but the snow was growing heavier.

  "Nicholas?" Her tone had a hint of panic in it. "Nick?"

  No answer. She saw the only set of footprints in the snow that looked fresh and began to follow the tracks. They disappeared and picked up again across the street, running between two of the empty houses. She climbed under the ropes that now connected the buildings and followed the prints a few hundred yards further outward, until they disappeared.

  Shielding her eyes with her good hand, she stood there, trying to find the footprints again. The snow now covered them, just since she left the church, and tears began to spill over her cheeks. But the biting wind had gotten stronger, and her tears were freezing, even as they fell.

  "Nick!"

  She turned back. She could no longer see the houses or the lanterns.

  She could no longer see anything.

  A mournful sound met her ears in the distance, and she froze, realizing its origin.

  It was the wolves.

  "Good boys…" Nick took a look back at the horses as he finished their feeding. They were holding up well. So were the horses belonging to the Andrews. "Stay here where you're warm and dry. I'll be back to feed you in the morning if Gleason can't come."

  He closed the stable door behind him and stepped out, staring angrily at the sky. Damn it. He'd had enough of the snow to last a lifetime. Anger welled up in him as the wind increased. The light had gone while he was at the stables caring for the horses, and he squinted through the snow trying to see the church. The lanterns were lit now. That was good. But the layer of snow that had melted earlier that day was frozen again. It was covered by another layer and slick under his feet. Cautiously, he stepped out to cross the street.

  He stopped when he heard it. A woman's voice? Taking another step, he slid. Turning, listening, he heard it again, further away. His eyes darted in the direction from which it had come. Surely, no one in their right mind would be out in this.

  The next time he heard it, there was desperation in the sound. It almost had the sound of Katie's voice, they day he'd found her outside the inn.

  "Katie?" he shouted.

  The wind was stronger now, almost a roar. Nick took off at a dead run, throwing caution to the wind. The ropes were still fastened from house to house and he slowed long enough to duck under them, picking up speed again. The familiar sound of blizzard winds drained him as he narrowed his eyes outward. The woods were not far off.

  The sound met his ears once more, and his heart nearly stopped. It was not the sound of Katie's voice he heard. The sound of wolves.

  He saw her almost the same moment he saw them, coming toward her. Reaching under his jacket, he pulled out his firearm and shot into the air.

  Katie turned. Even in the dim light, he could tell she was terrified. He ran with all his might, reaching her. The tears were frozen on her cheeks, and when she threw her arms around him, he gathered her to him. Another shot toward the woods halted the movement of the animals.

  "Nick!"

  "Shh—there's a cabin out here somewhere. Watch for it."

  "Nick," she whispered. "The pack…"

  Another shot, this time directly into the center of the pack, resulted in a painful howl. At the same time, he spotted the vacant shack and lifted Katie into his arms, running toward it.

  The sounds of the pack were drawing closer even as he found the door and closed it behind them. Setting Katie on her feet, he ran toward the back to make sure the door was shut. Then, coming back through the house, he shuttered the windows in each of the rooms with his pistol still drawn. He was breathing heavily, realizing how close they had come to being attacked.

  The dim light from the only glass window in the house gave just enough light for them to see each other. Seconds passed as they stared. Tears were streaming down her cheeks, and he took a step toward her just as she flew into his arms.

  "God, Katie," he said when he realized he was shaking almost as much as she was. "That was so close. What the hell were you doing out here?"

  "Looking for you."

  He lifted her chin. "Why would I be out here?"

  "B-because Phebe s-said you had gone to look for me." She gulped. "She said she told you I left. I was so worried—"

  "I haven't spoken to Miss Watson. Why the hell would I do that? Furthermore, why the hell did you?"

  "Don't shout at me, Nick! I woke up and you weren't there, and I went downstairs looking for you. She followed me back up and said you shoveled the snow away from the basement steps."

  "That much is true, I did. But I didn't talk to her."

  "Oh, Nick," she whispered. "I'm such a fool!"

  He gathered her to him and then, remembering her wrist, he lightened his hold.

  "You are many things, my girl. A fool, however, is not one of them. All right. Take my arm, and we'll search the house for some candles and try to light a fire. Then I want to know, word for word, what happened."

  A search through the kitchen drawers revealed two thick candles but no matches, and he led her back toward the hearth in the front. An oil lamp sat toward the back on the mantle over the hearth. It had little oil in it, but at least it would give them a chance to get settled.

  Nick reached up and ran his hand along the back of the mantle, against the wall. A broad smile plastered its way across his mouth as he pulled out a few long matches tied with twine and a piece of sandpaper.

  "Father Michael must be praying for us. Hold this," he said, handing the lantern to her. He pulled one of the matches loose and drew it down through the piece of sandpaper, whistling with glee when it lit easily. He set the candle up on the mantle and followed the direction of Katie's eyes as she looked around the room.

  It looked as if someone had just walked away and never returned. There was a wooden chair and a sofa covered with a quilt that had accumulated years of dirt on it. Curtains had adorned the windows once, but not in a long time. There were a few shreds left hanging from the top, and howling winds blew snow in around the shutters he'd hurriedly closed in little drifts. He watched it, scowling.

  They were both still shaking. She was trying to speak, but her teeth chattered so much it was difficult to understand her. Perhaps if he tried to distract her, she wouldn't be so frightened.

  "Listen to me. The next thing to do is check the flue and see if we can use it. This place has been vacant a long time, and it may be full of birds' nests, for all I know. There's wood enough in here to keep a fire going through the night, if we can use it. I can, at least, keep us warm, if not fed. We can't try to go back tonight in the dark. I won't take a chance on the wolves getting at us again."

  She nodded and waited as he took a
poker from the fireplace and climbed under it.

  "Hold the light under it, so I can see what's up there."

  She obeyed as he craned his neck to look, bringing the poker upward. A rushing sound was heard, and things began falling down all around them.

  "Nick! Look out!" Katie jumped back as empty birds' nests, followed by an avalanche of soot, rained down on him.

  "Well, damn." Nick's deep voice expressed his irritation.

  She fought the urge to laugh as he backed out. When he turned to face her in the lantern light, suddenly, she couldn't help herself. Except for the whites of his eyes, his whole head was black. She began to giggle.

  "Don't you dare laugh at me, you little beast."

  She tiptoed up and kissed his mouth and ran her finger along his cheek, holding it up so he could see the black. Putting his hand around the nape of her neck to bring her face to his, he rubbed his own cheeks against hers, leaving a trail of soot and grime.

  "Now your face is as black as mine. That'll teach you."

  The fire roared in the hearth a few moments later, and he reached up for the candle, lighting it once more and handing it to her.

  "Stay here," he ordered. "While I go and see if there are any blankets left in the house."

  Her eyes grew wide, and she shivered as a wolf howled outside. Nick drew her closer.

  "Can I go with you? Please?"

  In response, he drew her under his arm, taking her with him as they looked about the house. A few minutes later, with two blankets under one arm and Katie under the other, he brought her back into the front room and closed off the doors to the rest of the house.

  "Wait here, Kaitlynne," he ordered, putting her in front of the fire. The room was getting warmer now. Once again, he lit the candle, pressing it into her hands. When he came back, bringing in two old chairs, he didn't see her.

  "Katie?" His voice held more than a little irritation.

  "I'm in here," said a little voice. "In the kitchen. I found some lamp oil."

  He found her, standing in front of the pantry, searching the shelves.

  "I thought I'd see if there was anything to eat here, but there isn't."