The pastor looked at the children and said, “It’s a real pleasure to have you in Whispering Pines.”
“Thank you,” Jane said.
“I don’t want to go to church. And don’t think people will want to adopt us so soon. It don’t happen that way,” Davey said.
No one missed the heartbreak in Davey’s voice. Jack understood better than most how the young man felt. He walked over to him and put his arm around his shoulders. “Sometimes we all get surprised. In the meantime, you and your sisters have a nice home here with Miss Addie.”
“We’ll pray for a new beginning for you, Davey,” Clay said.
“I’m not much on prayer, either,” Davey said and walked away.
“That boy is carrying a lot of weight on those shoulders,” Jack said.
“Yes, he is.” Addie turned to follow Davey, but Jack reached for her arm to stop her. “Take Claire, I’ll go talk to him. He might need to talk to a man right now.”
Addie started to object, but she thought perhaps Jack was right. It couldn’t hurt for Davey to have a man to talk to for a change, and Jack knew better than anyone what it was like for an orphan. “Thank you.”
“I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to upset him,” Clay said.
“It wasn’t anything you said. The children have had so many disappointments,” Addie explained.
* * *
Jack found Davey in one of the bedrooms sitting on the floor. “Mind if I join you?”
Davey shook his head.
Jack sat beside him and braced his arms on his knees. “You want to tell me what’s bothering you?”
Davey remained silent.
Jack knew what was on Davey’s mind. He’d been in Davey’s position as a young man, and some things you just never forgot no matter how you tried to stuff them deep inside. When the children got off that stagecoach, his own childhood memories exploded to the surface like flowers popping through the earth during a spring thaw. When Claire touched the scar on his cheek, he recalled the day he’d received that ugly mark as clearly as if it had happened yesterday. In one of the many no-name towns he’d traveled through, a kindly cook in a restaurant had given him a freshly baked loaf of bread after he’d washed the dishes. He was twelve at the time, and though tall for his age, he was weak from hunger, having gone days without food. He’d left the restaurant through the back door and didn’t see the knife-wielding man who wanted the bread as much as he did. They fought, but the man with the blade slashed his cheek to the bone, and won the battle. It was the only fight he’d ever lost. Life toughened him up, and what was left of any childhood innocence he may have had, was replaced with hopelessness and anger. Looking at Davey’s despondent face was like seeing a reflection of his own image at that age. Other than Miss Addie, Davey and Jane no longer believed in the word of the adults they encountered. They’d lost their trust in the very people who should protect them. Claire was too young to be tainted by their bleak outlook, and Jack didn’t want her to lose her innocent expectations. He wanted the children to know the love of a mother, and the strong, guiding hand of a father who would always protect them. He didn’t know if he possessed the right words to assure Davey of the possibilities in life, but he wouldn’t allow the young man to accept defeat. “You know, Davey, I was orphaned at a young age.”
Davey’s head snapped up and he stared intently at Jack. “Really?”
“Yep. I lived back East in an orphanage for a while, just like you and your sisters.”
“No one ever adopted you?”
Jack shook his head. “I can’t say I ever gave them the chance. I was a few years younger than you when I took off on my own.”
“All alone? You didn’t have sisters or brothers?”
“Nope, I didn’t have anyone but myself. If I had sisters, like you, then I couldn’t have left.”
Davey nodded. “Yeah, it’s hard with sisters.”
“You’ve taken on a man-sized responsibility with your sisters. You know, Davey, even if you and your sisters aren’t adopted, I think you will be happy here with Miss Addie.”
“I wish we weren’t going to be adopted. We’d be a lot happier if we knew we could stay here with Miss Addie. The girls love her so much.”
Jack wished he could take Davey’s burden from him. “I bet you’ve grown pretty attached to her too.”
Davey nodded again. “We’ve talked about it, and the girls told me they want to stay with her.”
Jack thought that explained why Davey didn’t want to attend church. He didn’t want anyone to see him, and take him away from his sisters. “I understand why you’re worried. There’s one thing I know that might help you though.”
Davey looked at him. “What’s that?”
“You shouldn’t worry about something that hasn’t happened. None of us know the future, and all we can do is make the best of the situation we’re in at the moment. Does that make sense to you?”
Davey chewed on his lip as he considered Jack’s suggestion. “I guess. But that preacher acting like someone would want to adopt us as soon as they meet us makes me mad. That’s why I don’t like going to church, they don’t know what they are talking about. Most people say nice things, but they don’t really mean them. God don’t care about me and my sisters. No one will adopt all three of us. Maybe they would adopt me, or Claire, but Jane would be the one nobody will want. She’s not strong like me, and can’t do the work I can. Claire’s young and so cute everybody wants her. Jane is the one who always gets hurt.” He turned his sad eyes on Jack. “I don’t think God cares if Jane gets hurt.”
Jack’s heart ached for Davey. He clearly understood why Davey was inclined to be angry with God. He’d had those same feelings when he was struggling to survive. “I used to feel the same way, Davey, particularly when God didn’t answer my prayers to have a family.”
“You know what I mean then,” Davey said with grim satisfaction that his thoughts were finally confirmed by an adult.
“Yeah. I know what you mean. But you know what I realized?”
“What?”
“I realized that when it may seem like God isn’t listening, He’s preparing you for good things down the road. I knew I couldn’t give up unless I wanted to go around feeling sorry for myself the rest of my life. I came to the conclusion that if no one adopted me, there had to be a reason. I may not understand the reason at the time, but one day I’d figure it out. That’s what faith is all about; trusting when you don’t see evidence at the moment that things will ever change.”
“You go to church, Sheriff?”
“Yep, every Sunday.”
“Miss Addie makes us go. I don’t like going.”
“Listen to Miss Addie. She always went to church as a young girl, and I guess you know her grandfather was a pastor. I’d say she’s got a lot of pull with the Man upstairs.”
“It hasn’t done much good for us so far.”
“Give the folks here a chance, Davey. Life is full of surprises.”
Davey shrugged. “I don’t want anyone taking Claire away from me and Jane.”
Jack understood how difficult it would be to be separated from his sisters. He couldn’t blame him for that. He didn’t have all the answers, and he wouldn’t fill Davey’s head with possibilities that may never come true. He reached over and patted him on the back. “Keep trusting and believing, no matter what happens. You never know what tomorrow may bring.”
Davey didn’t say anything, but the way he studied Jack’s face said he was searching for a reason to believe one more time.
Jack thought he’d let him think things over. “Are you ready to get back to work?”
“Yeah.” Davey followed Jack’s lead and stood. “Sheriff, what did you do when you left the orphanage?”
“I mostly roamed from place to place, didn’t eat many good meals, and I took on odd jobs here and there. When I was fourteen, a sheriff in a small town took me under his wing. He gave me a cot to sleep on in the jail, made me go
to school and church. I was eating regular, and not sleeping out in the weather, so I didn’t argue about going. When I was old enough, he made me his deputy.”
Davey didn’t move; he stood there looking at the sheriff thoughtfully. “Maybe I could be a sheriff one day. How did you learn to shoot a gun?”
Jack didn’t want to tell Davey about the many hours he’d spent practicing before he’d met that sheriff, preparing himself for a different kind of life. It was only by the grace of God that he didn’t become an outlaw. “When I got older, I practiced with the sheriff.”
“Would you teach me?”
“I’ll teach you to shoot a rifle first. The most important thing is to be able to feed you and your family.”
“You would really do that, Sheriff?”
Jack saw a hint of excitement in Davey’s eyes. He reached out and clasped his shoulder. The boy definitely needed a man around. “Sure thing.” He winked at him. “Let’s keep this between the two of us right now. I’ll need to get Miss Addie’s permission, and we don’t want to push things too fast.”
Davey’s smile faded. “I doubt she would agree to that.”
“I’ll work on her. Now let’s get to work.”
Davey didn’t move. “Can I ask you one more question?”
“Sure thing.”
“Did you ever figure out the reason you weren’t adopted?”
Jack hadn’t thought about that question in a long time. “No, I can’t say that I have.”
“But you still think you will know one day?”
“That’s two questions. But, yes, I still think one day I will know.”
* * *
Addie saw Jack had his arm around Davey’s shoulders as they walked from the house. Davey was looking at Jack with an expression Addie had never seen on his face; one of admiration. She knew something important had taken place between them. They reached the horse, and she said, “We’re headed back to the ranch, Davey. We have some things to do before dinner.”
Morgan lifted Jane on the horse, but Claire ran to Jack and held her arms up to him. When he swept her up in the air, she giggled.
Jack positioned her in the saddle in front of Jane. “Jane, I think you will make a fine rider. After church tomorrow, we’ll all go riding.”
Jane beamed at him. “Thank you.”
He tapped Claire on the head, and said, “And you will ride with me, squirt.”
“Davey, we will see you at dinner,” Addie said.
“Yes, ma’am.”
Addie smiled at Jack, and he nodded.
“Bye, Pa . . .” Claire said, and her eyes slid to Addie to see if she’d heard her. Seeing Addie’s frown, she said loudly, “Sherf.”
“Bye, honey. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Jack could barely keep himself from laughing at the way she said sheriff.
“Aren’t you coming to dinner?” Addie asked.
“No, ma’am. I have to get back to town so my deputy can go home.”
“Well, thank you for all of your work on the house.” She tried to hide her disappointment that he wouldn’t be joining them for dinner.
“It’s been a pleasure. Doesn’t hurt to sharpen my skills.”
Morgan glanced at the pastor. “Can you join us for dinner, Clay?”
“I’m afraid not tonight. Addie, I will see you and the children tomorrow.”
“We’ll be there,” Addie replied.
As they were riding away, Claire turned around and waved to Jack.
Jack knew she would turn around and he’d waited. He remembered being a little boy and knowing he wasn’t important enough for anyone to go out of their way to wave good-bye. Whether they knew it or not, Davey and Jane bore the look of children who had been disappointed way too often. Maybe Claire could be spared the same heartache. Claire smiled wide when she saw him watching, and waved so enthusiastically that the women turned around to see who was waving to her. Everyone waved to Jack, and Jack didn’t move until they disappeared into the pines.
Chapter Four
Frank Langtry and his gang had no trouble blending in with the other misfits in the small Mexican border town. They’d spent nearly a month in a drunken stupor, emptying their pockets of what cash they had managed to accumulate from rustling across the border. Low on money, and tired of the entertainment provided by the local women, Frank was ready to go back to Colorado. All he had to do was get his men to agree. They were sitting in their usual drinking hole when he broached the subject. “Why don’t we head on back across the border tomorrow?”
“What for?” Deke Sullivan was afraid Frank wanted to return to Whispering Pines and create more havoc for Morgan LeMasters.
“Are we going rustling?” Corbin Jeffers asked.
“I think we should head back to Whispering Pines,” Frank replied.
“Now why would we do a dang fool thing like that? I ain’t had so much whiskey that I’ve forgotten we barely escaped the noose.” Dutch Malloy was the only man in the gang Frank couldn’t bully. He was a huge, hulking man, and Frank gave him a wide berth.
“I want to go back and take care of Joseph Longbow. You boys ain’t forgot he’s the only one who can identify us in court?” Frank wanted Joseph Longbow dead, but that wasn’t his only reason for wanting to go back home. He’d heard from an outlaw who rode into Mexico from Las Vegas a week ago that Morgan LeMasters was still alive. Frank had shot him twice and left him for dead, but somehow he’d survived. He’d thought he was finished with Morgan once and for all, and he wasn’t going to stop until Morgan LeMasters was dead.
“We ain’t forgot nothing, but why don’t we stay right here in Mexico? The law can’t find us here.” Deke wasn’t buying that Joseph Longbow was the reason Frank wanted to go back. Frank wanted to kill Morgan LeMasters. Plain and simple, Frank wasn’t going to be happy until LeMasters was six feet under.
“You want to stay down here forever? I say we take care of Longbow, and then they got nothing on us. We can go anywhere we want without looking over our shoulders for lawmen.”
“Yeah? What about your sister? You kidnapped her, and I don’t think a judge will take too kindly to that,” Corbin reminded him.
Frank glared at Corbin. “It’s her word against mine. I know you wouldn’t double-cross me, Corbin, and tell what I did.”
Corbin looked away from Frank’s soulless eyes. He was scared to death of Frank. He’d wanted to ride off long ago and get as far away from Frank as possible, but after witnessing how he’d treated his sister, he knew he would never get away without a hole in his back.
“I ain’t going back to Colorado. If you want to move on to another territory, then I’d be interested,” Dutch said.
“I’m with Dutch,” Deke said.
Corbin saw his opportunity to escape Frank’s irrational schemes. He always thought Frank was afraid of Dutch, and he wasn’t man enough to call him out. “I agree with Dutch and Deke.”
Frank glanced at the last man in the gang, Reb Tucker. “What about you, Reb? You afraid to go back to Whispering Pines?”
Reb wasn’t afraid of killing Joseph Longbow, but he wasn’t keen on riding onto Whispering Pines ranch again. “After what happened last time we were in those trees, I’m not hankering to ride on that ranch again.”
“All of you planning on staying right here? What about the Denver bank we were going to rob?” Frank asked.
“There’s other banks, Frank,” Dutch said. “We can ride to Kansas.”
“That’s true, but I don’t have an inside man in Kansas. I have a friend who works in the Denver bank.” Frank hadn’t told his gang that he’d already robbed the Denver bank while they were waiting for him in Las Vegas. He’d robbed the bank with Walt, but Walt hadn’t made it back to their designated meeting place. After the robbery, Frank ran from the bank first, carrying what he thought was his share of the loot. As he’d waited for Walt by the horses for a few minutes, he’d heard a shot. Seconds later, Walt emerged from the bank, saying he’d shot their inside man,
Reuben. Frank didn’t hang around, he’d ridden out of Denver fast, thinking Walt was right behind him. But Walt wasn’t behind him, and he’d never showed at their meeting place. Frank didn’t know if Walt was in jail or dead. Later, when Frank discovered that his saddlebag wasn’t filled with his share of the loot, he realized he’d been swindled. Frank blamed the double-cross on Reuben, since he’d been the one to fill their saddlebags in the bank’s vault. If Reuben wasn’t dead, Frank planned to get information from him about Walt before he killed him. No one doubled-crossed him and lived to talk about it. Now that some time had passed, he began to wonder if Walt and Reuben were working together to cheat him out of his share of the money. Either way, if they weren’t dead, they soon would be. “I know a place we can hide out in Denver, and no one will be the wiser.”
“How do you know you can trust this fellow?” Deke asked.
“He was a friend of my brother. Stevie said I could trust him,” Frank replied.
Corbin was tempted to remind Frank that Stevie was dead. Since Frank was most likely responsible for his death, he held his tongue. Frank’s sister said Frank killed Stevie in a fire. Frank denied it, of course, saying he didn’t know Stevie was inside the burning house, but Corbin was inclined to believe Frank’s sister. Not only did he question Frank’s story about Stevie’s death, he wasn’t so sure he hadn’t killed Walt. He suspected Frank and Walt had robbed that bank in Denver, and something went amiss, but he couldn’t prove it. All he knew was Walt never came back to their hideout after their trip to Denver.
“Since Stevie’s dead, what makes you think that his friend will help you?” Deke asked.
Before Frank answered, Dutch said, “What makes you think he’s still at that bank?”
“I figure we need to find out. It’s not like we can get inside help on another job.”
Dutch looked at Deke to get his take on Frank’s plan. Deke shrugged, and Dutch took that to mean it was up to him to make the decision. “We’ll meet you in Denver after you’ve taken care of business in Whispering Pines. You’re the one who shot Longbow, so you can clean up that mess.”
Frank didn’t like that response, but he looked at Reb and Corbin. “What about you two? You going with Dutch and Deke, or coming with me?”
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