A Bride's Dilemma

by Blythe Carver

  Melissa wanted to say all those things, but she didn’t. She just flipped her eyes from one to the other, waiting for the sheriff to ask her a question.

  “Well, how about when was the last time you talked to Jonah?”

  “I told you I haven’t talked to him or seen him since I left him in that jailhouse that day. I don’t want anything to do with him. Now I guess I don’t have to worry about it.”

  For the first time since she heard the news, Melissa was overcome with remorse and sorrow. She felt momentarily guilty that she hadn’t done more to help Jonah instead of pushing him away, but she quickly realized there was nothing she could have done for him. Jonah wasn’t the kind of man that would let anyone else run his life for him or tell him what to do. He had no master but himself.

  Melissa doubted he would have listened to Jesus if the Son of God had come down and spoken to him directly.

  When she saw the suspicious look remaining in Knox’s eyes, she felt like she was going to lose control. How could a man she had just met, no matter his job or his looks, make her feel completely exposed? He made her feel like she needed to confess to every bad thing she’d ever done in her life, including stealing strawberries from her neighbor’s patch when she was nine.

  “How about telling me where you’ve been these last few days? And how about your brothers? I’d like to talk to them, too.”

  At the mention of her brothers, Melissa’s temper flared, and she snapped at him, “If you want to talk to my brothers, you’ll have to seek them out and bother them the way you’re bothering me. You’re barking up the wrong tree, Sheriff. I’ll just have you know that.”

  She spun on her heel and stomped up onto the porch, across and into the house, slamming the door behind her.

  18

  Knox watched her turn and go, thinking she was too beautiful to be suspected of this murder. But he felt like he had to at least give it a try, see what he could get out of her. He could tell he’d maybe gone too far. Apparently, putting on a pleasant face didn’t mean the same thing to others as it did to him. Or maybe it was just that when he was actively trying to be pleasant, his face reflected something far different.

  He turned his eyes to Theresa and then to Baxter. Both of them were giving him disapproving looks.

  “I have to ask these questions,” he stated bluntly.

  Theresa shook her head. “You don’t have to be rude to her. She was going to marry that man, and you come and tell her this so bluntly like you don’t even care.”

  Knox jabbed a thumb in Baxter’s direction. “Actually, he was the one who gave her the bad news. I’m just the one she took it out on.”

  Knox didn’t want to be unpleasant or hurtful. He had an instinct to jump in and ask questions, relying on his attractive looks to keep the ladies calm and the men complacent. Sometimes those questions were taken wrong.

  He began to walk to the door to go inside. He wanted to see if her emotions were real. Why was she so defensive? One moment she didn’t seem to care Jonah was dead, and the next, she was running inside like she’d been slapped. He didn’t understand at all.

  Theresa stepped in between him and the front door, stopping him at the top of the steps. By this time, the children had come in from the field. Knox could see them standing in a haphazard line nearby, watching intently. He didn’t want to set a bad example for the kids, nor did he want to scare them. They needed to know if they needed protection, he and his deputies were the ones to go to.

  “You aren’t going in there with her, sir,” Theresa said firmly, holding up one hand chest-high to stop him. “I’m not going to let you pass.”

  “I just want to talk to her. Ask her—”

  “You aren’t going in and talking to her right now,” Theresa replied, cutting him off. “She needs to process all of this, and what she needs around her right now is friends and family, not strangers accusing her of murder.” Theresa looked at Baxter. “You can come in. But not him.”

  Knox didn’t know how to feel about that. On the one hand, Baxter knew the family and the town much better than he did. He knew these people and knew fully what to ask and what to expect as a reaction. On the other hand, his ego had just taken a hefty punch in the gut.

  “Anything that is said in front of my deputy can be said in front of me.”

  Theresa narrowed her eyes and gave him a daring look. “Clearly not. I don’t think she wants to see you right now or answer any of your questions. You can stay outside, and you’ll have to trust your deputy to ask the right questions. Come on, deputy. You can come inside.”

  Baxter gave Knox a sympathetic look.

  “It’s probably for the best, boss,” he said. “Things will be different after everyone knows you and you know everyone else. I’ll just go in and see where she’s been and what she’d been doing.”

  “Come on, children,” Theresa ordered the youngsters, who were still standing nearby, their eyes wide as they took in the scene. “Let’s go in and get washed for lunch. After lunch, we’ll go to the river. You’ll have to wait before swimming, though, so you don’t get a cramp.”

  Knox watched as the woman rounded up the children and scooted them across the porch in front of him to the front door. Their feet patted firmly over the wood, and the door swung several times as they went through. Baxter gave him a questioning look.

  “You know I’ll ask the right questions, boss,” Baxter murmured. “Don’t feel bad. They don’t know you, and you don’t know them. I remember a time when Jonah wouldn’t have been in your sights. He was a good man once. God along with nearly everyone.”

  “Then something must have changed for him. Drastically.“ Knox swept his eyes to the front door just as Theresa disappeared to the other side. “People don’t just switch personalities for no reason. Something must have happened. Find out exactly when Jonah started acting differently. Even a guess would be better than nothing.”

  Baxter nodded. “I’ll ask that. Anything else you want me to remember?”

  Knox thought about it for a moment. He actually had quite a few questions for the ladies. At least for Melissa. He wanted to ask her brothers the same questions.

  “They knew him better than anyone else, I would think. Other than his aunt. Since you know them pretty well, too, you just ask questions and judge by their answers whether they’re honest or not.”

  Knox could tell he’d said something off when Baxter raised one eyebrow and gave him a look of skepticism. “The Winchester family isn’t known for being liars, boss. Just so you know. These aren’t the city people you’re used to from Sutton. These people are hard-working and honest, even the real wealthy ones. They wouldn’t kill anybody. I’ll ask them questions, but we’re probably gonna be better off going down different roads of inquiry.”

  Knox appreciated the advice and nodded to show it.

  “I’ll be back out as soon as I can. Maybe I’ll send out one of the kids with a glass of lemonade for you. The Winchesters always have cold drinks ready for guests.”

  The thought of a nice cool drink made Knox’s mouth water. “Now I need a drink. That would be good of you. I feel like the child being sent out of the schoolhouse for interrupting.”

  He shook his head to the sound of Baxter’s laughter. The deputy turned and went up the porch steps, crossing over and going straight through the front door, calling out, “It’s me, Baxter. Where are you?”

  The door closed behind him, and Knox felt an overwhelming silence envelop him. He shouldn’t have felt that way, considering there were multiple dogs running around in the compound behind him, ranch hands that were taking a break, talking and laughing outside the chow house, and plenty of action from the horses being trained in the corral.

  Still, it felt like he’d been abandoned on an island somewhere. He didn’t know the Winchester ranch at all.

  While standing there feeling bored and uncomfortable, Knox decided to stroll around the perimeter of the house, taking in everything he could. He tur
ned and headed to the left. The deck surrounded the entire house, even where there were additions put on, and the deck had to be reconstructed to fit the new aesthetics.

  The land was beautifully landscaped. He shaded his eyes when he got to the back so he could see the mountain, reaching up high into the sky and touching the clouds. He imagined how many critters were roaming that land and decided it was almost time to go hunting. He’d have to ask permission from the Winchesters, he thought, and if Melissa didn’t change her mind about his intentions, that would probably be a no-go.

  He continued wandering, stopping every now and then to look at different objects, animals, or ranch hands. As he was coming from the back of the house, returning to where he was, he stopped only momentarily to look in the window at Melissa, the deputy, and the sister-in-law.

  They weren’t exactly having a party. The looks on their faces were sober and solemn. Melissa still had her arms crossed over her chest.

  Knox continued on, not wanting to look like he was spying on them. He continued to the front of the house, satisfied once more when he saw the two brothers riding up from the pasture.

  Just the men he wanted to see.

  19

  “Please don’t mind Sheriff Knox,” Baxter said, coming in the parlor and standing just inside the door, his hat in his hands, a reluctant look on his face. “He doesn’t mean to be that way, I don’t think.”

  Melissa blinked at him. “You don’t know him either, do you.” She spoke the words as a statement rather than a question.

  Baxter pressed his lips together momentarily. “Unfortunately, no. I don’t know him any better than anyone else. I reckon I’ve spent more time with him, so maybe a little more. But I don’t think he’s a bad man. His heart is in the right place. I think he’s just trying to navigate being in a brand new place and having a murder happen two weeks after you arrive.”

  Melissa snorted. “How dare he suspect me when that is the situation? He shows up, and someone gets killed? How would he feel if I was suspicious of him?” She huffed, turning toward the window, her mind going back to Jonah and how she would literally never see him again. He would never come sauntering through that door. He would never put his large hands on her small waist and pick her up with ease?

  Not that he’d done that particular action anytime recently. Not for a very long time, as Melissa reminded herself.

  “I think he thinks you are,” Baxter replied. “But let’s not talk about the sheriff. I just wanted you to know he deserves a chance, even if he’s callous about this. He’s a good man, I think. We just gotta give him a chance.”

  Melissa thought about it for a moment and had to reluctantly agree. She looked over her shoulder from where she was standing in front of the window. The sun outside was bright, but Melissa could see dark clouds in the distance. She wondered if that was in any way symbolic of what she was going through right now. Were the worst times still yet to come? Just like the rain that was eminent?

  “So what do you want to ask me?” she said. “Tell me what you saw. Are you sure he’s dead? Not just hit on the head?”

  Baxter shook his head. “It was me and the sheriff that found him. He was in bed. Looked like it might have happened in the middle of the night. I can’t give out too much information right now. It might hinder the investigation.”

  Melissa wasn’t satisfied with that answer. She shook her head. “The only way you should be cautious is if you don’t trust me. I thought you did. Are you worried about Theresa? She won’t say anything. As a matter of fact, we should get Annie in here. All the adults need to know what’s going on, right?”

  “We’ll talk to Annie later,” Baxter said, “don’t worry. We really only came to give you the news. It doesn’t look like you are very concerned about it. I guess that might have set Sheriff Knox to thinking something other than what it is. I understand, of course.”

  Melissa stared at him. How could he possibly understand?

  “Understand what?” she interjected. “How I feel or how he feels?”

  Baxter was quiet for a moment. “Both, I guess. He doesn’t realize how much Jonah changed and how you couldn’t possibly continue to feel the way you did before—when you agreed to marry him. He just sees you as a woman who was scorned and is angry about it. I understand how he might see that. People aren’t always right, Melissa, even people with good intentions. Just tell me who you think might have wanted to hurt Jonah.”

  She gave him a look, raising one eyebrow, and he chuckled. “Besides you.”

  “Well, it obviously must have been one of those men he was seen with,” Theresa said, moving her eyes to Melissa. “Don’t you think?”

  In her shock, Melissa hadn’t given a second thought to the men who had seemed so threatening to her. She turned her body away from the window to face the deputy.

  “Yes,” she exclaimed. “It has to have been one of them.”

  “Who is this now?” The deputy looked completely confused.

  Melissa felt excitement flow through her as if she’d just discovered something wonderful. Not only could she easily divert attention from herself, but she could also even provide extra incidents that might help the sheriff discover who the murderer really was.

  She didn’t know why she’d want the sheriff’s attention anyway. Despite Baxter’s attempt to dissuade her opinion, she was beginning to think the man was only good-looking on the outside.

  “There have been some strangers lurking around. You know, Baxter, the ones you had in the cell with Jonah the last time I was there. I’d seen one of them several times before, and another man, too.”

  Baxter looked thoughtful. “Would you recognize this other man if you saw him? I’m sure Sheriff Knox will want to look for him. And which one of the men Jonah was fighting had you seen before? Luke or Paddy?”

  Melissa blinked at him. She didn’t know the name of the man she recognized.

  “Luke sounds familiar,” Theresa interjected. Melissa had almost forgotten her sister-in-law was there. She turned to see Theresa was looking at her through wide eyes. “Remember when we followed Jonah and crossed the street behind him? Wasn’t that the name Luke I heard?”

  Melissa flushed with adrenaline, remembering the incident. She nodded and swept her eyes over to Baxter. “Yes, she’s right. Luke is the name. I’m almost sure of it.”

  Baxter had raised his eyebrows and was giving the women a serious look. “Let me get this straight. You followed Jonah? Why would you do that?”

  Melissa brought her eyebrows together. “I didn’t like the way he was acting. He’d been avoiding me. I wanted to see why. Who was more important to him than me. That’s why I followed him.”

  Baxter shook his head, closing his eyes briefly. “You do realize how much danger you put yourself in, don’t you?”

  Melissa lifted both arms and extended them out to her sides, shrugging at the same time. “I do now. Besides, what was I supposed to do? Go to the jailhouse and whine until one of you asked Jonah what was up just to be told it’s none of your business? You couldn’t have done anything, so I did it myself. And he still didn’t pay much attention to me, even after I talked to him.”

  “So you did talk to him then?”

  Melissa shook her head. “That was before you had him in the jailhouse.”

  “I’ll tell you something,” Baxter said nonchalantly. “That Luke Belcombe didn’t strike me as a killer. He was defending himself and his friend, he said, in a poker game where Jonah tried to cheat.”

  “I don’t think you can automatically assume the man was telling you the truth.” Melissa and Baxter looked at Theresa when she spoke. “They could easily have been fighting for any other reason. What did the other men say? Did they back up his story?”

  Baxter had a strong look of doubt on his face. “Well, Jonah and Buddy wouldn’t talk. Paddy was pretty drunk and kept saying Luke would know better than him and that he needed a doctor. We just kept them in there. Jonah was the only one who ba
iled out. Because of you, Melissa.”

  His voice didn’t sound accusatory. Melissa was happy about that. She was already feeling guilty that she wasn’t at all upset by the news of Jonah’s death.

  “I reckon you could say you gave him another chance at freedom,” Deputy Baxter murmured.

  “And somebody decided to take that away from him.”

  The silence was deafening after Melissa spoke.

  Melissa pictured Jonah in her mind the day she had met him and the days that followed immediately afterward. It had been a whirlwind of a romance at the start. The day after they met, they started spending more and more time together, talking every day, going to dinner and plays, and becoming a couple. As the years dragged into three and then four, Melissa started to wonder if he would ever actually marry her. They’d been betrothed for so long, it was almost like they were already married and lived in separate places.

  That’s when Jonah had started to pull away. And now he was gone for good.

  Melissa didn’t know how to feel about that.

  20

  Knox was standing at the edge of the porch looking out at the main road in the distance when two riders turned onto the path to the house. He squinted, clutching his pipe in his teeth. He could barely make out the faces but decided it must be the Winchester brothers.

  Rich and Nate dismounted and came toward him. Rich was pulling off his gloves, and Nate already had his off. He was holding his hand out to shake, and Knox took it after clumping down the stairs.

  “I can’t imagine what my sisters and wife are thinking leaving you outside.”

  Knox chuckled, liking the men more the longer he stood there.