Beneath the Tombstone (The Tombstone Series)

by Martin Cogburn

  Misty smiled and brushed her free hand over his cheek. “We’re both okay now.”

  “Yes,” Jason agreed, pressing her hand against his lips. “Thank God for that.”

  “So you’ve started thanking God for things, too?” Misty asked with a sweet and curious look on her face.

  “Yep,” Jason replied in a matter-of-fact way as he gently toyed with the ring on her finger. “Ever since the moment I realized that the things we love most can be taken away in a heartbeat.” Jason sighed deeply before looking up into Misty’s eyes. “Anyways,” he said, placing her hand on his shoulder. “You were talking about the FBI and the doctor before I interrupted.”

  “Oh yes,” Misty said, sitting back down and scooting her chair up close to the side of the bed. “The FBI said it would take a while to get DNA off of the bones… if it was even possible. He may have been burned beyond any means of identification.”

  “So they don’t think the second explosion was part of the doctor’s plan?” Jason asked.

  “No,” Misty replied. “Apparently, after the house became vacant, some old-time miner decided to store dynamite in the basement and probably died before coming back for it… and they think that’s where the doctor ran for safety from the first explosion.”

  Jason leaned back against his pillow. “What about dental records?” he asked. “Have they tried using dental records to confirm his ID?”

  “They didn’t even find a skull,” Misty replied with her face crinkled up like the thought was almost more than she could bear.

  “Ouch,” was all Jason could say. He sat in silence for a moment. “Well, in a way, it’s too bad the doctor’s dead. He sure left a lot of unanswered questions.”

  “Well, look who’s awake,” a voice called out from the door as it creaked open a bit. Tyler’s head poked in.

  “Come on in,” Jason invited. “I’m sure you two have already met while I was in a state of unconsciousness, but I’d feel robbed if I didn’t get to introduce y’all.” He looked over at his wife. “Misty, this is Tyler, a very good friend.”

  “Pleased to meet you again, ma’am” the tall cowboy drawled, tipping his hat.

  “Tyler,” Jason spoke proudly, “this is Misty, my wife.”

  “Nice to meet you again, too,” she said with a smile.

  The door opened once more. Rye and Irwin stood out in the hall, looking in. “Hey, y’all come on in,” Jason invited.

  With hats in hand, the two horsemen walked forward. “Boy, I tell you what, Jason,” Irwin spoke, “you’re a sight for sore eyes.”

  “Hey man,” Jason laughed, “I’m alive. Could be worse.”

  “Yep, a lot worse,” the old horseman agreed solemnly.

  “You know,” Misty said thoughtfully, “Irwin here told me something very interesting.” All eyes turned to her. “He said that Eden House was created by a woman named Maggie as a place of rest and comfort for lost and distressed women.” She was silent for a moment, lost in some deep thought. Everyone leaned forward, afraid they would miss her next words. “It was strange,” she continued. “When they took me to the Eden House, I felt safe… protected – and I’m not sure why.”

  “Maybe just knowing the story about Maggie’s ghost still protecting lost, distressed women helped,” Jason said with a shrug.

  “I didn’t know about Maggie,” Misty replied, “or about the story behind Eden House or about her helping people – or about her ghost haunting the place.” She paused for a moment then, with a smile, added, “If I had known, I don’t see how that knowledge would have brought me much comfort.”

  “That’s true,” Jason admitted with a chuckle, and the others joined in. “So,” he said, turning his attention to Irwin, “how is our famous ghost, Ms. Maggie, anyways?”

  “She’s gone on now,” the older cowboy replied solemnly.

  “Oh?” Jason responded in surprise. “Was it because, by helping Misty, she fulfilled her calling here upon this earth?”

  “No,” Irwin replied with a crafty grin. “You blew her house up. She had no choice but to move on.”

  They all burst into laughter. Jason shook his head and sank tiredly down into the softness of his pillow. “Sorry guys,” he heard Misty speak. “Y’all come back later. He needs to rest.” Jason tried to protest, but sleep began to overpower him; then the world of darkness enveloped him once more.

  Sometime later, he awoke to hushed voices in his room. “I just can’t believe he would do this,” a strange voice whispered. Jason opened his eyes and saw Misty and Susan standing on each side of a teary eyed middle aged woman. “Oh, he’s awake,” the stranger said as she moved to the side of his bed. Jason scooted away as far as he could, trying to put a safe gap between himself and the emotional woman.

  “I’m so, so sorry,” she sobbed. “I can’t believe he did this to you.” She then turned and looked at Misty. “To both of you,” she cried. “To all of us!”

  Misty walked over to the opposite side of the bed and placed her hand on Jason’s shoulder. His wide, questioning eyes turned and looked up at her.

  “This is Dr. Throckmorton’s wife,” Misty explained.

  Jason turned back to the stranger, understanding. After a moment, he relaxed, scooting back to the center of the mattress. “I don’t blame this on you,” he reassured her gently. “You couldn’t have known.”

  “I was so blind,” she said with a sob.

  “You couldn’t have known,” Jason repeated. “None of us did. I mean, he helped me look for the kidnappers!” he exclaimed, bringing his hand up to his temple as he shook his head, still unable to believe it. “You want to talk about being blind? – Now that’s being blind.”

  “I just wanted to come and ask for your forgiveness,” she spoke softly, casting her eyes towards the floor.

  “There’s nothing to forgive,” Jason assured her. The woman’s pleading eyes shifted upwards, meeting his. The look was more than he could bear. “I forgive you,” he spoke kindly after a moment, “now you just need to forgive yourself.” A relieved smile came to her face, and thankfulness at having spoken the right words filled Jason’s heart.

  “Jason,” Susan spoke with a smile, “a certain young someone has been dying to see you.”

  “Ken?” he asked. Susan nodded. “Well, let him in,” Jason said with a laugh.

  Susan opened the door and called out into the hall, “Y’all can come in.”

  Ken walked in, followed by the little girl from his ballgame, Rebecca. What was she doing here? She hung back, but Ken approached and wrapped his arms around his uncle, giving him the best hug possible, considering the bed and other obstacles that were in the way.

  “So,” Jason spoke quietly, in a teasing tone, “how’d you manage getting you little girl friend to come along?”

  “Girl friend?” the doctor’s wife asked, her head snapping up abruptly. “I thought they were just friend-friends.”

  “This is also Rebecca’s mother,” Susan said, stepping forward and placing a hand gently on one of the defensive woman’s shoulders.

  Jason turned and looked back at Ken. Betrayal was on the boy’s face. His uncle could do nothing but shrug and mouth the words “I’m sorry.”

  “Rebecca honey,” her mother spoke, “would you go wait back outside dear?” Without a word, the little girl turned and left.

  “Now,” her mother said, turning back around and staring down at a wide eyed boy, “my children have been through a lot here lately – Rebeca especially. She was very close to her father.” She paused for a moment before adding, “She has lost so much.” She sighed and shook her head. “You must be kind, respectful and a gentleman in every way… but most importantly, please be a friend to her. She needs that and, as long as you understand that you are both too young for anything more than friendship, come see her any time.”

  A smile lit up Ken’s face. “I will. Yes ma’am. Thank you.”

  She smiled in return, said “goodbye” to everyone and walked o
ut the door. “Come on, Rebeca. Let’s go home,” she called to her daughter.

  “Can Ken still be my friend?” the little girl asked, concern evident in her voice.

  “Yes,” Jason overheard her mother reply, a smile in her tone.

  “Well,” Jason said with a relieved sigh, “that ended about as well as it could have.” With that, they all burst into laughter.

  “I tell you what,” Jason said after a moment, “learning that Ken’s girl fr… I mean his friend-friend is the doctor’s daughter came as quite a shock.” He shook his head. “She’s so sweet and sincere… and the doctor – he was so… nothing but a liar.”

  There were a few more moments of silence before Jason gasp.

  “What is it?” Misty cried, grabbing his arm in fear. After a few moments of getting no response, she turned to her sister. “Go get the nurse,” she ordered.

  “No!” Jason exclaimed, finding his voice.

  “Then what is it?” Misty demanded.

  Jason turned his attention to Ken. “You say Rebeca’s father got her a dog?”

  “Yes sir,” the confused boy replied.

  “Not a puppy?”

  “No sir,” the boy replied again. “I haven’t seen it, but she said a dog.”

  Jason slammed his hand down on the railing of the bed. Misty jumped. “Jason, what is it?” she asked in a shocked voice.

  “I’m so stupid,” he responded loudly. “If a little girl had gotten a puppy, she would have said a puppy ‘cuz little girls love puppies, but she said dog,” Jason rambled. He lay still for a moment before sitting up. “I’ve got to get out of here,” he stated. “I’ll check myself out.”

  “Honey, they won’t let you check out until they think you’re stable,” Misty said, grabbing his arm.

  “I’m stable,” Jason growled. “I’ll bust out. Bring Tyler and that crazy old man with his shotgun. They’ll get me out.”

  “No,” Misty spoke firmly. “You need to rest.”

  “I’m rested,” Jason said, sounding like a cantankerous old man.

  “You don’t look rested,” Misty exclaimed. “You look… restless,” she added like she wanted to cry.

  “That’s probably because I’m over rested,” Jason replied, throwing his hands in the air.

  “Jason,” Misty spoke, gripping his arm, “why? Why are you so ready to leave?”

  “Ken’s friend is the doctor’s daughter,” he stated, as if that should explain everything. Misty still looked at him, confused. “He got her a dog, not a puppy. He was taking care of Dixie for me. He told me she was killed.”

  “You think he gave his kids Dixie?” Misty asked in surprise.

  “Yes!” Jason exclaimed. He then turned towards the door. “Nurse!” he yelled loudly.

  Misty placed her hand on his cheek and turned his head back to her. “Please babe,” she spoke earnestly. “I’ve almost lost you two times over the last several days. Will you please wait until the doctor releases you… for me?”

  Jason sat with his face squished up against her hand for several seconds as his decision hung in the balance. Finally, he let out a big sigh. “I’ll try.”

  “Thank you,” Misty said, placing a gentle kiss on his hand before helping him lay back down.

  - - - - - -

  The next day passed by at a snail’s pace. The only things that got Jason through were the Bible, prayer, and having Misty safe there by his side. The fact that his doctor said he was showing signs of rapid improvement also helped. Towards the end of his second day, Jason got to get up and walk around on his own a bit, Misty close by his side.

  After lying back down, Misty moved a chair up close to the bed and gently took his hand. “Jason,” she spoke quietly, as if something was bothering her, “I have something I need to tell you.” She sighed, and a tear trickled down her cheek. “I never meant to start keeping secrets from you, but you kept saying we didn’t have enough money to have a baby, so I, um, started saving money on the side.” He squeezed her hand. What she didn’t know was he’d had quite a while to come to grips with what she was confessing. He was just thankful that she was being open with him.

  Misty sighed then blurted out, “There’s around twenty-thousand dollars saved,” like she was determined to be rid of the burden of secrecy. She tensed up slightly, seeming to wait for an outburst of anger on Jason’s part. When none came, she continued. “I called it our baby fund. I was planning on taking you on a little vacation for your birthday and break it to you then. And hope you’d forgiven me by the time we got back home.”

  Jason smiled. “Is that the money you were alluding to that night down by the river walk?” She nodded. “I didn’t know you were talking about money we actually had,” he laughed. “I thought it was hypothetical money.”

  “So… you’re not mad?” she asked warily.

  “I was at first,” he admitted. “The FBI turned it up in the middle of the investigation. But by then, I had come to grips with how out of control I was with money. Didn’t know it was our baby fund though. I just thought you were afraid I’d spend it all.”

  “Thank you for understanding,” she spoke gratefully. “I’m sorry for keeping things from you.”

  “Hey, we’ve both done our share of that,” Jason admitted.

  “How ‘bout we make a deal?” she asked. “No more secrets?”

  “No more secrets,” he agreed then paused for a bit. “I light of that, do you have anything you’d like to come clean on about the way we first met?”

  Misty’s face flushed an embarrassed shade of red. “Susan told you?” she exclaimed.

  “More like she let it slip,” Jason laughed. “One of those she-didn’t-know-that-I-didn’t-know sort’a deals.”

  “I had all but forgotten about that!” Misty laughed. “That’s so embarrassing! I can’t believe I dumped food on you to get your attention.”

  “Hey now,” Jason playfully lectured, “you had my attention long before dumping food on me. But I am glad you did it; that’s how we got together, after all,” he added, lovingly brushing his hand against her cheek.

  Misty leaned over to his ear. “I love you, Jason Hathaway,” she whispered.

  “I love you more,” he responded, turning his head so their lips met.

  - - - - - -

  Finally, a few days later with Misty by his side, Jason walked through the double sliding doors to the outside world. Though he’d only spent a few days in the hospital, it had felt like eternity to the tenth power. He took a deep breath, inhaling the sweet smell of freedom.

  Under the watchful eye of his wife, Jason made his way to the truck. When he started to get in the driver’s side, Misty spoke up firmly. “Hold it. Hold it,” she ordered. “I’m driving this wagon. You’re ridin’ shotgun.”

  Jason held up his hands in surrender before making his way around to the passenger side of the truck.

  “Home?” she asked after hopping in on the driver’s side.

  “Nope,” Jason replied flatly. “Take me to the doctor’s wife’s house.”

  Misty started the truck. “You sure you don’t want to wait a few days?” she asked.

  “Yep,” Jason replied. “I’m sure.” He paused for a few moments before he spoke. “You got her number?” he asked.

  “Yes,” Misty replied. “Why?”

  “Just gonna let her know we’re coming and why,” he replied.

  A short time later found Jason standing on the doorsteps of one of the many fancy homes on the block. He knocked on the door. It opened slightly, and the tired face of a woman bearing a heavy load peeked through. “Mrs. Throckmorton,” Jason spoke kindly.

  “The dog’s around back,” she said quietly. “The kids are in the play room. I would rather they didn’t have to see.”

  “If it is her, don’t they want to say goodbye?” Jason asked kindly.

  “They’ve said too many goodbyes lately,” the lady responded, shifting her sad eyes down toward the porch.

  W
ith that, she came out the front door, closing it quietly. Misty joined them, and they walked around to the back yard where the doctor’s wife opened a gate, motioning for Jason and Misty to go in… and there she was, chewing on a rubber toy.

  “Dixie!” Jason called as he squatted down.

  She looked up, and joy came to her face as she leapt to her feet and raced towards him. She plowed into his lap and began the task of showering him with happy, slobbery kisses.

  “Hey girl, how you been?” he spoke to her quietly. She barked a happy response.

  “Please keep her quite,” the lady pleaded. “The kids will hear her.”

  “Keep it down, girl,” Jason spoke, giving her head a rub.

  “Who’s with Goldie?” a young voice spoke.

  Jason and the child’s mother spun around in surprise. A boy no older than five or six was staring wide eyed. His oldest sister walked up to the boy’s side with Rebecca close behind her.

  “Goldie?” Jason asked. “Her name’s Dixie.”

  “Why’s ‘e pettin’ Goldie, momma?” the boy asked, the instructions on the dog’s name seeming to have gone in one ear and out the other.

  “Can you kids please go back inside?” the woman asked, fighting back tears. “Go watch a movie or something.”

  “Is ‘e tryin’ to take Goldie,” the boy demanded. “Don’t worry, momma,” he spoke bravely. “I won’t let ‘em.”

  “Honey,” his mother spoke gently, “she belongs to this man.”

  “No, she don’t,” the boy argued. “Daddy gave ‘er to me!”

  “Maybe daddy didn’t know she belonged to somebody,” she responded, casting an uneasy glance Jason’s way. He didn’t say a word. The children’s memory of their father was all they would ever have of him. He wasn’t going to taint that.

  Rebecca walked towards Jason and Dixie. She buried her face in the dog’s fur. “You be a good girl, Goldie,” she spoke, her voice betraying the tears that threatened to fall. “I love you. You’re my best friend.” Dixie licked her gently on the cheek. She rushed back over to her mother and hugged her waist. The boy’s bottom lip was pouching out, and he looked like he didn’t know whether to fight or cry. Jason took a deep breath. He couldn’t believe what he was about to say.