Love Inspired Historical July 2015 Box Set: The Marriage AgreementCowgirl for KeepsThe Lawman's RedemptionCaptive on the High Seas

by Renee Ryan

  When the marshals had raided Ben’s previous boardinghouse, they hadn’t had enough men to both give chase and search Ben’s belongings. So Will had hunted for evidence. Ben was too good to leave much in the room, but Mary’s current address written on a sheet of paper left with the letters had been enough to at least give Will an idea as to where Ben might be headed next.

  Mary Stone might say she didn’t know anything about Ben, but the fact that Ben had kept her letters told Will that the outlaw still had some interest in her. Ben didn’t keep things for sentimental purposes.

  The marshals hadn’t done much to stop Ben anyhow, so it was up to Will to fix his mistake in letting Ben get away the first time. Ben had a scheme in mind, and Mary Stone was right at the center.

  If only he had the missing pages from the letters. Then he might be able to see the full extent of Mary’s involvement.

  The shadows behind Mary’s eyes had spoken of a deeper fear than just meeting a stranger. He’d seen the same shadows behind Daisy’s eyes just before she’d shot him. Daisy, whom he’d thought so noble and pure. Not so.

  Mary seemed like an innocent girl. But he’d been deceived once before. He wouldn’t make the same mistake he had with Daisy. If Mary was involved, he’d have no problem helping the authorities put her away in a jail cell.

  Chapter Two

  Mary stirred the pot of beans before dishing out a serving to the miner who stood before her in the churchyard. “Here you go. Polly’s got some cookies over there if you’d like one.”

  A smile peeked out from his bushy mustache. “Thank ye kindly.”

  The next miner approached, and Mary barely glanced up as she dished out another serving. “Enjoy. If you want some cookies—”

  “I don’t want cookies. I want to talk to you.”

  Him. Mary glanced around to be sure the rest of her family was busy with their tasks before looking at Will Lawson. “I already told you, I have nothing to say. Now, please go, before someone notices.”

  “I hear you made these beans,” Will said with a twinkle in his eyes. “And I aim to enjoy them, then when folks clear out, I will talk to you.”

  Not if she could help it. Mary looked down the line to see a number of others waiting to be served. At least it would give her time to figure a way out of this confrontation.

  “Fine. Have your fill.” Mary plopped more beans on his plate.

  “You know I want more than beans from you.” He touched her hand, sending a small jolt through her body.

  Oh, she knew what that jolt was. Mary looked hard into Mr. Lawson’s eyes, letting him see that she was not affected by his charm. Not one whit.

  The one good thing about her time with Ben was that she’d learned a lot about the way men thought they could get a woman to do their bidding with a pleasing look and flirtatious smile. And she wasn’t falling for it. Not now. Not ever again.

  Only, the steely expression Mr. Lawson gave her in return was far from flirtatious. In fact, he looked deadlier than an unexpected blizzard in winter—and just as cold.

  “I can’t help you,” Mary said slowly, quietly, trying not to draw attention to the conversation. “Please, go.”

  Mr. Lawson’s gaze remained firm. “I’ll be waiting when the meal’s over. Talk to me, or I’ll be speaking with Pastor Lassiter about finding assistance.”

  Mr. Lawson didn’t seem the type to make idle threats. And while Mary knew that Frank Lassiter preached forgiveness, she wasn’t sure she deserved it.

  She’d done so many bad things in the name of love. No, she hadn’t known the various baubles she’d sold on Ben’s behalf were stolen, but she knew the law wouldn’t see it that way. And if there was one thing she knew for certain about Frank, it was that he believed in owning up to one’s mistakes and facing the consequences. If he knew the truth, he’d make Mary turn herself in.

  How could Mary risk going to jail when her only crime was believing Ben’s lies?

  When her brother Joseph had discovered the silver mine, making her family wealthy, she’d tracked down every family Ben had stolen from and anonymously made restitution. They didn’t know it was Mary, of course, but surely it was enough. Everything had been returned to the victims, as best as Mary knew how.

  But for people to actually know what she had done?

  Her family needed her. More important, now that her family was linked to the pastor’s through Joseph’s marriage to Annabelle Lassiter, they needed Mary’s reputation to be untarnished. Who would welcome Mary into their homes, knowing what she’d done? And how much damage would it do to Frank’s ministry?

  Jail and pariah-hood. That was what Mary faced if the truth came out. Yet here stood Will Lawson, thinking he could just stare his way into ruining lives.

  “So, what’s it going to be?” he asked, not breaking his stare.

  “Meet me after. I’ll slip out, and we can talk over by the fence.”

  She’d become good at slipping away and meeting with people undetected. Well, a person. Ben. She’d vowed to be different now that she knew the truth. But here she was, sneaking around again.

  Would she ever be free of her past?

  “You’re holding up the line!” Ernie, one of their regulars, shouted from the back.

  Mary didn’t bother hiding her relief as Mr. Lawson moved on. She continued serving the men in line, giving Ernie an extra portion for his patience. He rewarded her with a toothless grin.

  “I’ll be naming my next big strike after you, Miss Mary.”

  “I’m honored,” she told him, ignoring the sick feeling in the pit of her stomach. She already had a mine named after her—by her father, who had done unspeakable things in pursuit of those riches.

  At least Ernie didn’t have a family back home relying on him. Like her father, he put every dime he had into prospecting. If it wasn’t for the church feeding him on a regular basis, Mary had no idea how the poor man would survive.

  She watched as Ernie took a seat among some of the other men, grimacing as she realized he’d sat right next to Mr. Lawson. Mr. Lawson caught her eye, and she turned away.

  “Well, if it isn’t Miss Mary Stone.” The familiar drawl jerked her attention to the man standing before her.

  Ben Perry. The reason her life was in such disarray.

  “What are you doing here?” she said, looking around again to be sure none of her family noticed that two of tonight’s visitors, both of questionable character, knew Mary.

  “Now, that’s not the way to treat a man you promised to marry.”

  His voice slid down her spine, making the hairs on her arms stand on end.

  “I sent you a letter ending things.” Mary looked around. A letter, she realized, that Will Lawson now had in his possession.

  Fortunately, Frank was engaged with a group of men, eating and talking. Her siblings all seemed to be occupied with their respective tasks. Even Polly, her friend and possibly the only confidant she’d consider telling, was busy.

  “Please, leave,” she told him in the harshest voice she could muster without drawing too much attention to herself.

  Gone was the charming smile he’d used to lure her in. Something evil glittered in his eyes as he said, “I don’t think so.”

  Then, in a voice so loud it would have been impossible for anyone not to hear, he said, “My darling Mary, I’ve finally found you.”

  Ben looked as though he was about to try to embrace her, so Mary did the only thing a woman in her situation could do. She dumped the plate of beans square down the front of his shirt.

  “You will regret that.” His voice remained low and menacing, all while he was putting on an act of the charming, debonair man she’d once fallen for.

  “Dear, sweet Mary. You’re so overcome with joy that your clumsiness has come upon you again.”

  People began surrounding them. Polly was first at her side. “Mary! I can’t believe it. A secret beau!”

  Somehow she found herself brought around the table and nex
t to Ben with his arm around her.

  “My Mary made me promise to wait until she’d heard news from her brother. I left only briefly to find a job to support us, but when I returned, Mary was gone, and it’s taken me all this time to find her.”

  Mary’s eyes narrowed at the vile man pretending to be the loving suitor. What was he up to? When she’d refused to participate in his foul plans, he’d cast all sorts of insults at her.

  “Imagine my surprise at finding her here, her brother building the family a fine home down the block, the pillars of Leadville society caring for the poor.”

  Of course. Ben knew they had money. What he’d stolen back in Ohio hadn’t been enough to keep him long. So now he was here, trying to get himself a rich bride.

  Mary removed herself from Ben’s grasp, noticing that Mr. Lawson had wound his way to the front of the crowd that had gathered. At least now he wouldn’t be confronting her. He’d said he’d wanted to find Ben. Well, here he was.

  “That was a long time ago, Ben. So much has happened since we last saw each other.” She gave him a long, hard look. “I’m afraid it wouldn’t be right to take up where we left off.”

  “So, that’s how it is.” Ben gave a long, exaggerated sigh. “Now that she’s a wealthy heiress, she doesn’t want anything to do with a lowly workingman, taking what odd jobs he can to support himself.”

  With a long look of sadness that she couldn’t believe the others didn’t see through as being completely fake, he continued, “Back in Ohio, Mary said that love was all we needed. But now that she’s had a taste of the good life, she can’t bear the thought of a simple rented room.”

  Oh, the nerve of the man… Mary shook her head, wishing she could ask God for a way out, but knowing that since her sin was what had gotten her here in the first place, God wasn’t likely to offer his assistance.

  Of course!

  Mary gave him what she hoped was a look of deep regret, then turned her attention to the crowd. “While it’s true that at one point I may have had feelings for Ben, I’ve had time to grow and reflect upon my relationship with the Lord. Given that Ben doesn’t have a relationship with Christ, it isn’t right for us to be together.”

  Of all the things Ben most despised, it was anything to do with the church. In her foolishness, she’d thought that by loving Ben, she could get him to love the Lord, but in the end, it had only rent a hole in her own faith that she wasn’t sure could ever be repaired. At least that was one mistake she’d not repeat.

  Ben stepped in front of her and clasped her hands with such fervor she thought they’d break. “Oh, Mary darling, then all your prayers have been answered, because I’ve been going to church.”

  More lies, she was sure, but with the oohs and aahs from the gathered crowd, she wasn’t going to let him get away with it.

  “Which one?” The words came out more peevish than she would have liked, but she simply couldn’t allow anyone, least of all Ben, to think they had any future.

  His grip on her hands tightened, making her wince with pain. “Lots. I’ve been moving around, searching for you. But now that I’ve found you, and I see what a wonderful job this church is doing for the poor, I believe I’ll be staying.”

  She knew she’d been beaten. The only way out was the truth, and by the way everyone had all fallen under Ben’s spell, Mary knew that not one of them would believe it. An accomplished thief and scoundrel, Ben knew all the tricks of worming his way into people’s hearts.

  “Please,” she whispered, “don’t do this. Just go, and I promise, we’ll talk later.”

  But Ben didn’t release her hands. “I could never bear to leave my beloved’s side.”

  He bent, and as he kissed her hand, he whispered, “I still have your aunt’s brooch. If you don’t cooperate, I’ll be sure it’s found in your possession.”

  Every hope of getting out of this situation undamaged shattered. To Ben, it was just a brooch he’d stolen. From what she’d seen in the satchel that night, one of many. But to Mary, it was one more reminder of how she’d failed her family and wreaked so much havoc on their lives.

  How much more would she have to suffer for the foolishness of believing herself in love? For thinking that a man could love her? No one would believe she hadn’t stolen the brooch. Just like they wouldn’t have believed her the night she’d discovered the extent of Ben’s deception. He’d planned things too well and set her up to look too guilty.

  Mary pulled her hands from his grasp, shaking them to rid herself of the lingering kiss he’d placed there and to bring the blood back to the fingers he’d crushed.

  “Then I hope you know how to do dishes.” She gestured to the pot that lay nearly forgotten on the ground. “Because now that supper’s over, we’ll have plenty to wash.”

  Never mind the fact that she hated washing dishes. Ben hated doing them even more. Actually, the man hated any kind of work, so if there was any blessing to be found in the situation, this was it. Surely he couldn’t keep up this act with dishes to be faced.

  “Now, darling.” He grabbed her hand again and brought it to his lips. “You know that I would love to help, but I’ve only just got to town, and I still need to secure lodgings. I’ll return first thing in the morning, and we can talk about our wedding then.”

  She fought the urge to slap the face so close to her hand. Instead, she turned away, trying to ignore the whispers of how romantic it was.

  “Tomorrow, my love, tomorrow.” With a look that could only be described as a threat, Ben was gone.

  She should have felt relief as she watched him leave. Even more relief at noticing that Mr. Lawson had also disappeared. She gathered the dishes and brought them next door to the parsonage. But when she entered the kitchen, the murderous glance her sister Rose shot her only brought more discomfort.

  “You evil, evil sister,” Rose hissed, standing in Mary’s way. “Oh, I recognized him right away. All those trips to the mercantile and errands to town. To think you almost had me fooled.”

  Rose knew. She’d known all along. What should have brought relief to Mary’s torment only made it worse.

  “Rose, I—”

  Her sister gave her another look of sheer hate. “Don’t bother. Nothing you say can make it better. When I think of all the times I had to stay at Aunt Ina’s to look after the little ones so you could go to town on an important errand.”

  With a shake of her head, Rose continued, “All that time, you were going to see him, weren’t you?”

  Mary couldn’t deny it. Couldn’t pretend that she hadn’t done her best to find every excuse in the world to see Ben, leaving Rose to mind their younger siblings. Rose hadn’t been as good as she had been at protecting them from Aunt Ina’s wrath. But Mary hadn’t known that at the time.

  Or maybe she’d been too head over heels to notice.

  Either way, it didn’t matter. Because Mary had been wrong, terribly wrong.

  “I’m sorry,” she said simply, wishing there were other words she could say to make her sister feel better. To take away the harm she’d caused.

  But Rose wasn’t looking to feel better. She wanted blood. “You’re sorry? Sorry isn’t going to get Silas back. While you were off wooing your beau, mine got tired of waiting and married Annie Garrett. Annie Garrett! I could have been Mrs. Silas Jones, but you were too busy lying to me and catering to some dandy so you could be first.”

  Silas? Rose was mad about losing Silas to Annie? Was it wrong to be relieved that her sister wasn’t accusing her of greater sins, of which Mary was indeed guilty?

  “Rose…” She softened the look she gave her sister. “That had nothing to do with Silas marrying Annie. She was the only child of the family who owned an adjacent farm. Their fathers wanted to combine the farms and expand the holding. Silas was always going to marry Annie.”

  “It was me he loved,” Rose wailed. “He told me so by the cottonwood behind the church. Silas carved our initials in it to seal the promise of our unending lo
ve. He didn’t bring Annie there, he brought me, and he kissed me, and he said he’d love me forever.”

  Tears rolled down Rose’s face. “I was supposed to meet Silas so we could run away together. But you were late getting home from taking the eggs to town. You said you were delayed helping Mrs. Burdoch’s lame horse. Now I know it was a lie. You were meeting him. And since I missed my meeting with Silas, he married Annie instead.”

  Nothing Mary said would convince Rose of the truth. She had been helping Mrs. Burdoch. Ironically, it had prevented her from meeting Ben—the first time they’d planned on running away together. Unlike Silas, Ben had been more patient. Who would have thought that one lame horse could wreak so much havoc?

  If Mary could kiss that horse, she would. It had saved her from making the biggest mistake of her life even worse.

  “Rose, you were there when Mrs. Burdoch brought over the pie to thank me for helping her. It’s true that I did lie to meet Ben on a number of occasions, but that wasn’t one of them. I’m sure Silas was meeting you to tell you that the wedding had been arranged, not to run away with you.”

  The sting of her sister’s hand against her cheek was wholly unexpected. It should have hurt more, but as the side of her face throbbed, it felt almost good to finally receive some of the punishment Mary deserved.

  “You know nothing of my relationship with Silas. Just as I knew nothing about your beau. And now you sit here telling me that Silas never loved me because you’re so smug about having a man track you down. I hope you remember at every happy moment of your life with him that it came at the expense of mine.”

  Rose turned and ran out of the house. Mary took a step toward her, but Polly reached out a hand to stop her.

  “Let her go. She needs time.”

  Mary turned to face her friend. “How much of that did you hear?”

  “Most of it.” Polly shrugged. “If she’d done more than slap you, I’d have stepped in. But she needed to get it out. She’s been nothing but angry and bitter since she got here. Now I know why.”

  And here Mary had thought it was about having to accept an illegitimate sister. Maybe Nugget was the least of their problems. As much as Mary thought she’d been listening to her siblings, perhaps she’d been making a lot of assumptions.