“Ben will pay whatever you want. You don’t have to do this. You can start over, go anywhere.”
He pulled her to the kitchen. A wooden chair from her dining room set was sitting in the center of the floor. “Sit.” He shoved her onto the chair. Then he tied her hands behind her back and her ankles to the legs of the chair. “Not telling the police this time are you, Molly. All this to save the woman your husband loves. Aren’t you the martyr?”
Her head snapped up. How would he know this? “She’s my friend and Ben doesn’t love her. He loves me. He’ll come for me, you wait. He’ll find me.” At least I hope he does.
“You better hope I’m long gone or your friends will be in great pain. I’ve never hurt a child before, but there’s a first time for everything.”
“You’re a bastard, Tom. A sick, sick man.”
He raised his hand and sent a fist crashing into her face.
Her head bounced off her shoulder from the impact. Pain shot across her face before she righted her head. “Nothing you can do to me will make a difference. You’re still dying right here.”
“Oh? And who’s going to do the deed? They never got most of the money. I don’t need Ben’s money I’ve had mine hidden away. Now I’m out and a rich man. Does that sound like the work of a sick man to you?”
A throbbing had settled in her temple. She ran her tongue along her lip and tasted blood. “So why do this? If you’re a rich man, go spend your money and enjoy your freedom. All you’re getting here is a quick death.”
“From who? You’re husband.” He backhanded her this time.
“Yes, her husband.” Ben stood behind Tom Marlow with his gun leveled. “Stand down, Marlow. Lay a hand on her again and I’ll shoot you in the back.”
“Not going to happen, Boss man.” Tom turned and faced Ben.
Molly saw the look of shock on Ben’s face.
“Joe. But, you’re my manager at the Silver Lady.” His gun wavered. “I don’t understand.”
“I’ve been working and staying close so I could get the chance to do what I need to do. See Molly’s got to pay for sending me to prison. She’s going to suffer for every day I spent in there.”
“No. You’re done. Get away from her.”
“Can’t do that, Ben. She owes me.”
“She doesn’t owe you anything. Now move.”
Instead of stepping away, he jerked and a knife appeared in his hand, then he swung it toward her.
Ben fired but not before the knife did its work.
Molly screamed.
Marlow fell to the floor. Ben’s aim was true and his shot hit Tom in the left side of his chest making him crumple.
Ben holstered his gun and ran to his wife. “Molly, are you all right?”
“No, I’m not. I see spots before my eyes.”
“Molly, stay with me. I love you.”
But she’d already fainted.
A shot rang out.
Ben turned and saw Gil with his gun pointed at Marlow.
Tom had his gun in his hand and now a hole in his head where Gil hit him.
“Thanks, Gil. I thought he was dead.”
“Think nothin’ of it Ben. Just doin’ my job.”
CHAPTER 12
Ben untied Molly, and then he tore of the hem of his shirt and pressed it to her wound. There was so much blood; he couldn’t tell how much damage was done. He picked her up in his arms. “Gil, bring my horse back with you. I’m taking the buggy and getting her to the doctor quick.”
“Sure thing, boss.”
Ben carried Molly and gently put her in the surrey. Then he whipped the horses to a gallop and got her to Matt’s office. Hoping against hope he was there.
“Matt,” Ben called as he entered the office. “Matt, I need you.”
The doctor came running out from the back.
“What’s wrong? Good grief, bring her here.”
Ben followed Matt into the back room, the surgery, and laid Molly on the table.
“Who did this?” Matt began to clean her face.
“The man she ran from. Tom Marlow.” Ben knew Matt and Julia had already heard the story of Tom Marlow.
“I hope he’s dead.”
Ben nodded. “He is.”
“She’ll have a bad scar from that wound. There’s nothing I can do to stop that, but I’ll make the stitches as small as I can.”
His gut churned at the thought of her being so injured. Yet he knew it could have been so much worse. “I’m sure she’ll appreciate that.”
“I don’t know how this is going to affect her, mentally. Some women can’t handle the situation when their face is scarred.”
Ben looked down at the Molly on the table. He took her hand in his, tears in his eyes. “She’ll be fine. She’s strong, and I don’t care that she’s scarred. I care that she’s alive.” He looked up at the doctor. “I could have lost her, Matt.”
“Yes, you could have. Have you told her you love her yet?”
“Not that she heard.” His body tensed and he wanted to rail at the heavens for his stupidity. “I should have before now. What if she doesn’t believe me?
“You’ll have to deal with that.” Matt finished cleaning and began stitching up the knife wound that stretched across her cheek from her ear to close to her nose.
Ben’s clothes were covered in Molly’s blood from the wound. If he could have borne the injury himself he would have.
With the help of laudanum, Molly stayed unconscious for the entire surgery, which Ben was thankful for. He didn’t want her to be in pain.
Julia came into the room. “I just saw Gil outside. He told me what happened to Molly. How is she?”
“She’ll be fine,” said Matt. “But healing will take some time.”
“She never should have gone and but he made threats against Julia and the kids.” Ben closed his eyes for a moment then opened them and tried to feel what she must have felt.
Julia’s hand flew to her throat. “Oh, my God. She was trying to save us.”
Ben nodded. “He was a crafty individual. He was working in one of my saloons as my manager. I hired the bastard.” He gritted his teeth and then continued. “He went by another name and since I didn’t have any idea what Tom Marlow looked like, I never knew.”
“I can’t put on a bandage, so I want you to keep her wound clean, you can use just soap and water and then pat it dry, twice a day. Let me know if there is any redness or seepage.”
“I’ll do it, Matt.”
“If you can’t, make sure someone trustworthy does.”
“I said, I’ll do it,” growled Ben. As carefully as he could, he transported Molly home and put her to bed. She’d hurt when she came to because it had been a while since she’d had any laudanum, but she needed to wake up and talk to him. Matt said he could give her more laudanum if she needed it but the baby was better off if she didn’t take a lot.
She moaned in her sleep and slowly came awake.
“Molly? Can you hear me, sweetheart?”
“Ben,” she said without opening her eyes. Then, her eyes popped open and she sat straight up. She said through gritted teeth, “Tom? Julia and the kids, he’ll hurt them.”
“Shh. Julia and the babies are fine. Tom Marlow won’t hurt anyone ever again.”
With a sigh, she lay back. “Good. He needed to die, before he hurt anyone else.”
He was elated she was alive and devastated she was in so much pain. The Almighty was giving him another chance and he wouldn’t waste it.
“Would you like some water?”
She nodded. “Yes, please.” Even those two words cost her as she winced with pain.
He poured her a glass of water from the pitcher on the bureau and brought the drink to her.
She took several swallows before handing back the empty glass.
“Are you in pain? Do you want some laudanum?”
She shook her head. “I want a mirror.”
He watched her fight the pain.
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She swallowed and closed her eyes before speaking again. “I want to see what he did to me.”
“You don’t want to look at that now. You’re swollen and—”
“Give me my mirror…Ben.” She spoke slowly, every word seeming to cause her pain, but there was steel in her voice. Then she calmed and relaxed a little. “Please.”
He went to her dressing table and brought her silver-backed hand mirror to the bed.
She held it in her right hand and touched her damaged face with her left. At the sight of the cut with the stitches, she flinched and tears rolled from her eyes and she turned away, laying the mirror on the bed beside her.
“How can you bear to look at me? Go away, Ben. Please, just go away.”
“Molly. I’m not going away” He sat on the bed next to her and took her hand in his, stroking his finger along her skin. “I’m never going away.”
“l don’t understand. You have the perfect reason now to leave me. No one will expect you to stay with a wife who’s so disfigured. Why won’t you leave?”
“A very simple reason really.” He smiled. “I love you.”
“Don’t lie to me.” Her hands fisted in the sheets. “I don’t want your pity.”
“I’m not lying. And I would never pity you.” What has happened in her life that she would think I would pity her? “Molly, why would you think I’d pity you? What aren’t you telling me?”
“My mother was injured in a cooking fire. Her hands were scarred terribly and she lost the use of her left one because of the burns. My father never looked at her the same way again.”
“Molly I’m not your father. I’ve been an ass. To let you continue to believe I was in love with Julia when I’ve been in love with you for so long. But I was afraid.” This was hard to admit and he clenched his jaw. “Julia was safe. I could never have her. But you. You were my wife. What if you rejected me? I couldn’t handle it.”
“But now… I’m not pretty anymore.”
“You are beautiful. Inside and out. This scar does nothing to distract from your appearance. You survived a horrific attack and are an amazing woman. One I’m proud to call my wife.” He brushed a tendril of hair off her face. “Won’t you please give me a second chance to prove it to you?”
“I don’t know what to believe. The kind, caring man in front of me, or the stern, distant one I’ve lived with for more than six months. Who’s the real Ben King?”
He pointed to his chest, his heart. “This is the man who loves you. This is the real Ben King. The one who has finally learned his lesson.” He shook his head and swallowed hard. “I almost lost you without ever knowing what loving you could be like. Let me prove my love to you. Don’t send me away.”
She turned away. “I can’t believe that, not now. Not with me like this. I need time to think. Now that Tom is gone, I want to move to the house as soon as I can, after I heal.”
His eyebrows lifted. “You still want to live there? Even after what happened?”
“Yes. It’s my home and I’m not letting him chase me out of it. I’ve been running from him for long enough. I’m not running any longer.”
“What can I do to prove, that I love you?”
She thought for a minute. “Court me.” Her face hurt. The stitches limiting her ability to talk. “Take me to that theater you own. The Bird Cage. Take me there, but for now, give me laudanum.”
“No.” Frowning, he shook his head. “The Bird Cage isn’t a theater for the likes of you or any upstanding woman. It’s a theater for men.” On this point, he would not give. “I’ll take you to Schieffelin Hall which is a theater and opera house. You’ll enjoy the performances. I should have taken you before now.”
“Yes, you should have.”
He mixed the laudanum and gave it to her. “So does this mean you’ll forgive me?”
“I hurt too much right now,” she touched fingertips to her swollen jaw and winced, “to think about it. Maybe by the time our daughter is born.”
“What makes you so sure the baby is a girl?”
She shrugged. “I just know. Everyone else has been having boys. It’s time for a little girl for these little boys to chase after when they get to be big boys.”
Ben laughed. A real laugh. He was so damn happy she was alive and would be all right.
* * *
Ten days later, Molly went to get her stitches removed. Her face had healed well. The bruises were gone and the only thing left showing was the knife wound. Matt had done a good job. He put in twenty stitches to keep the scarring to a minimum, but there was no way to prevent it entirely.
She went into the office. Being able to walk there by herself, made her aware of just how much she appreciated the freedom to walk where she wanted and come and go as she pleased.
Julia was at the desk.
Molly looked around the office and waiting room. “What are you doing here? Where are the babies?”
“They’re next door with Esther. She’s the lady that has been coming in and doing Matt’s cleaning once a week. She and I had a discussion and she still does the cleaning but she also watches the babies for a few hours each day. It gives me a chance to see patients and to help Matt.”
“Sounds like a good arrangement.”
Julia smiled. “It is right up until it’s time to feed Walt. Then things get a little loud if I’m late.”
“Yeah, I bet it does. That little one has a good set of lungs.”
They both laughed.
Julia sobered. “I bet you’re here to get out those stitches aren’t you?”
“Yes and I am definitely ready. They are itching something awful.”
“Well, I’d say it’s time. Matt’s doing some paperwork in his office. Let’s go see what he says.” She stood.
They walked back to the small room to the right of the surgery.
Matt sat behind a small desk that seemed dwarfed by his size, so much so that it looked like a child’s desk.
“Matthew,” said Julia. “Someone is ready to have her stitches out.”
Matt looked up and smiled. “Molly. Good to see you. You’re looking well. Let’s go into the surgery and take a look at that wound.”
“I’m going back up front. Holler if you need me.” Julia turned and walked out of the room.
Matt and Molly walked next door to the surgery. Molly slowly got up onto the examination table. At about seven months pregnant, she was moving slower.
The doctor examined her cheek, pressing a little in different places. “Does this hurt?”
“No.” Molly answered the same each time he asked.
“Well, the wound appears to be healed so I’ll remove the sutures.” Using a small pair of scissors, he worked quickly and had all twenty stitches out in no time.
“The scar is will be a little red and raw feeling for a while, but you’ve done very well taking care of it. Just continue what you’ve been doing but add some salve to the routine. I’ll give you the ointment.”
“If it’s horse balm, don’t bother. We already have some. Ben has used it on me before.”
Matt chuckled. “No, this isn’t horse balm but petroleum jelly. It will help prevent more scarring.”
“Oh, all right.” She accepted the little jar of clear salve. I’ll try anything to help make the scar go away.
“Put it on twice a day, morning and evening.”
“Yes, sir.”
“I’m serious Molly. It will help fade that scar from the angry red mark it is to a small white line, that even you won’t notice that much.”
“You’re wrong Matt. Every time I look in a mirror, I see that scar. It reminds me how very lucky I am to be alive.” She placed her hand on her ever expanding belly. “How lucky we are to be alive. He could have taken both our lives if not for Ben and he would have taken Ben’s life if not for Gil. I won’t ever forget that.”
Matt nodded. “I understand and you’re right. You were lucky that maniac didn’t take out his frustrations on yo
ur baby. Apparently he wanted you to be maimed more than dead otherwise I think you would be.”
“In all ways, I’ve been extremely lucky. Thank you, Matt. I’m going to go pack now. I want to get moved to the house.”
“You’re still planning on moving today?”
“Yes. I want to have a real home. I want to have my baby in my home.”
“Are you letting Ben move there with you? Or are you staying separated?”
“We’re not really separated. He just sleeps in another room. I’m sure he’s told you.”
Matt laughed. “Yes, he’s complained about it to me, to us, probably to anyone who wants to listen.”
Molly chuckled. “Do you think I’m being too hard on him?”
“You’re asking the wrong person. It took me weeks to realize that I loved Julia and wanted to stay married to her. I almost lost her, too. It gives you a different perspective.”
“I’ll probably let him move out there with me. I don’t want to be rambling about in the house by myself. I’ve hired a cook—one who’s been trained by Sadie, specifically for the position with us. And I have a woman who will be the housekeeper, so I won’t be totally alone. But I still think I’d like for Ben to be there.”
“Good, because I want to be there.”
She whirled and looked behind her. Ben stood leaning against the door frame, his arms crossed over his chest. Her heart fluttered as it always did when she looked at her husband. But she was holding him to their arrangement. He was courting her and they would get married again, in the church, on Sunday. Until then he was barred from her bedroom.
“When did you sneak in?”
“I didn’t sneak in.” He pushed away from the door and walked toward her. “But I was here long enough to hear that you’d like me to come to the house with you. To that I say I agree. I heard nothing else, I promise.”
“That’s enough,” said Molly, staring up at him. “You weren’t supposed to know that until I asked you. I wanted my request to be a surprise.”
He took her hands in his. “It still is, just not when you wanted it to be. But I thought you wanted to be alone.”
She rubbed the top of his hands with her thumbs while he held her. “You know I don’t. I simply want you there when I want you, which happens to be now.”
Mail Order Baron (The Brides of Tombstone Book 3) Page 12
