Redeeming Lies

by Samantha St. Claire

  The few assembled guests reacted with hand-covering tittering of their own.

  Jessie glanced down at her stomach and up at the concerned faces of her friends. She hiccupped once, then gasped, grasping her belly again. Her eyes spoke her apology even as she broke out into another fit of laughter.

  Bart ushered Jessie down the aisle, murmuring apologies along the way.

  "We might need to speed this up," David whispered to the pastor.

  Flustered by the interruption, the pastor thumbed through his bible. He looked up, pale and slightly off-balance. "Um, do you, David, take Maddie to be your lawfully wedded wife?"

  David, eyes focused on Maddie’s, smiled his answer and said, "I do."

  Another burst of strange laughter carried from the house. Maddie squeezed David’s hands until she saw him wince.

  The pastor gasped, "And you, Maddie? You do, too?"

  "I do!"

  Ely played a quick-paced wedding march, as David and Maddie ran back down the aisle hand in hand. The pastor called out behind them, "I pronounce you, man and wife!"

  Even though Maddie did not have the natural inclination to coo over babies, holding Jessie’s little girl began to modify her opinion. Lena held Bart’s boy, a red-headed clarion of protests.

  "Too bad they weren’t born earlier, they could have been the ring-bearer and flower girl," Jessie said. Weary as she was, her face glowed with joy, her freckles bouncing on her cheeks.

  "I don’t see signs of freckles on your little girl," Maddie said. The infant lay in her arms, fast asleep.

  "Well, this one sure is a faerie-kissed," Bart said, peeking over Lena’s shoulder at the squalling pinched-faced boy.

  David rolled down his shirt cuffs, tiny lines at the corners of his eyes betraying his own fatigue as a result of the past six hours. "So, what names have you decided upon?"

  Bart perched on the bed beside his wife, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. "Jessie says the girl is Alena Rowena."

  Jessie held his hand in hers. "Just like I told you I would, Lena."

  Lena smiled. "Yes, you did. You have your own, Lady Rowena."

  "The boy, well, we weren’t too sure the little man could bear up under the name, Ivanhoe, so we decided on Thomas."

  David pulled back the corner of the baby boy’s blanket. "That’s a fine name."

  "We’ll not forget your anniversary," Jessie said with a sleepy voice.

  "It’s time this mother had some rest." David took Rowena from Maddie’s arms and lay her beside Jessie. At the same time, Bart took Thomas from Lena. The two proud parents made a happy picture for Maddie to lock into her memory of this special day, her wedding day. She didn’t mind sharing the occasion at all.

  The wedding guests had all left, leaving the barn cathedral to just the two couples and Ely. Ely lifted his violin to tuck beneath his chin and began to play the tune Maddie recalled from so many nights ago, Sweet Evalina.

  David took Maddie’s hand and pulled her into his arms. In rhythm to the music of the night, he carried her into the dance. Round and round, in perfect accord, perfect step, they danced beneath the stars and the moon and the mountain.

  Pressing his lips to her ear, he whispered the words she’d never tire of hearing, "I love you, Maddie."

  He knew her and he loved her for who she really was, Maddie Reynolds. She would always be his true love.

  Epilogue

  David held Maddie’s hand firmly in his as he helped her board the train car. This time the tracks would take them together back the way they’d come, back to the place they’d first met in Shoshone. From there they’d travel west. David wanted to introduce her to his dearest friends, Jonathan and Kat Winthrop, and Boise City would be an interesting place to spend their honeymoon.

  Maddie settled back into the seat while David tucked their bags overhead. When he was seated, she snuggled into his shoulder. The train started with a lurch. The passing landscape triggered memories, both painful and surprising. So much had transpired in these past few months, changing her forever from the foolish girl she’d been when she’d boarded back east. Seasons change. People too. Perspectives alter. The terrain that had seemed so cold and hostile held a beauty for her now.

  With a secret smile, David shifted, pulling an envelope from his pocket. He handed it to Maddie, wrapping his arm around her shoulders as he did. “Lena asked me to give this to you.”

  Maddie read the return address. It was from Boise City, the lettering in a woman’s fine handwriting. She looked for an answer in David, but he’d drawn his features into an enigmatic expression. She rather liked that she couldn’t read him so easily. Some mysteries were best kept as such.

  "Open it, if you’re curious," he said.

  The envelope was addressed to Lena, but the letter inside was addressed to her. She took in a sharp breath as she read the signature. Mary Hallock Foote.

  The letter was brief, not as she’d expect to find from the pen of a writer. But the words were carefully chosen to convey much meaning. It was an invitation to dine at her home in Boise City. She wrote that having read a rough draft of Maddie’s short story about Jessie and the colorful characters of Ketchum, Mrs. Foote wanted to offer her assistance in opening doors into the publishing world of New York.

  Maddie looked up, astounded. "How? Did you?"

  David shook his head, his dimples deepening. "I wouldn’t presume. It was Lena’s idea, but I did help find an address. It required a little detective work." He grinned, his eyes sparkling with mischief.

  Maddie lifted her hand and caressed his cheek with her fingertips. "You dear man."

  David kissed her forehead. "I believe in you, Maddie."

  Pressing the letter to her breast, she leaned her head against David’s chest. To be believed was a wonderful thing. Not to hide. Not to disappear. To be her true self was all she ever wanted.

  The End

  Author’s Notes

  Nellie Bly Although the story implies that Miss Bly’s trip began in spring, Nellie Bly’s trip around the world actually began in the fall of 1889. She did complete the trip and went on to make history in journalism and inroads for women in the world of publication.

  Miss Emma Willard’s School for Young Ladies of Means did exist and still does today. One of her most notable graduates was Elizabeth Cady Stanton. While Miss Willard did not campaign for women’s suffrage, her progressive ideas for educating women led many of her students to naturally desire such privileges. Although most of her students went on to become housewives, their lives were greatly enriched by their time spent in the school, where they were allowed to learn subjects once considered only appropriate for men to study, like the sciences and advanced mathematics.

  Mary Hallock Foote was a successful writer and illustrator in the late nineteenth century and into the twentieth century, writing many books about her experiences traveling with her husband through Idaho’s mining camps. Settling at last in Boise City, she built a fine house for herself overlooking the town while she continued to make a reputation for herself as a writer. Her house is still standing.

  The Real Con Game was perpetrated by Henry C. Freund arrived in New York City in the mid-1880s claiming to have invented a method for refining sugar for a fraction of the cost of the industry’s conventional methods. While keeping his methods secret, he managed to scam investors of over a million dollars. With the rise of electric power and the mystique around this new wonder of the modern world, people were willing to believe in The Electric Sugar Refining Company. He was eventually found out for the scam but never lived to come to trial.

  The Sicilians and the beginning of the crime families. Including the Sicilians as Maddie’s pursuers involved considerable research and at one time I considered removing them from the story. However, in the1880s their criminal activities were making news in the large eastern cities. It is conceivable that as they strove to amass wealth, they could have been duped by the real scam mentioned above. One fact is certain, the Sic
ilians did not take kindly to crimes against their family. Their retribution was known to be cruel and swift.

  Dear Reader,

  I hope you enjoyed reading Maddie and David’s story as much as I enjoyed writing it. The best way to thank an author for a good read is to leave a review. BookBub or Goodreads.

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  Logan Craig made a promise to return by harvest to Montana and the woman he loved, Micheline McDonald, but the War Between the States ended four years ago. Most have given up hope of seeing him again. Only Micheline continues to believe he’s a man of his word and she’ll hold him to his promise.

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  Wishing you a happily ever after,

  Samantha St. Claire

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  Did you love Redeeming Lies? Then you should read Comes the Winter by Samantha St. Claire!

  This is her last chance and she won't allow man or nature to rob her of what she's worked so hard to claim.In the fall of 1886, Alena Sommer leaves behind a life fraught with disappointments and loss only to arrive in Sawtooth City and find the man she'd pledged to marry has been killed. To return east is unthinkable; to stay is ill-advised, but she resolves to remain and manage the man's lodging house despite the warnings of winter's deadly storms. More than her stubborn nature influences her decision. From her first glimpse of this mountain valley she falls captive to its wild beauty and begins to sink her roots into its rich earth. Sharing her love of literature with her lodgers before a warming fire, she builds a family of lonesome souls, where dreams awaken.However, one man stands apart, disturbing her peace with ominous warnings to leave before winter comes. Evan Hartmann knows from personal loss that winter snows bring to these mountains both unimaginable beauty and death. He is also a man conflicted, because as much as he'd like for Lena to leave the mountains, his heart longs for her to stay."Rich descriptions and entertaining characters bring to life the beauty and struggle of life in the 19th-century West. This cozy tale grounded in the everyday will surely delight historical romance fans." – Publishers Weekly Starred ReviewLush landscapes, relatable characters, and compelling stories of courageous women are the hallmarks of Samantha St. Claire's historical fiction.Be inspired. Fall in love. Discover your next favorite author with COMES THE WINTER.

  Also by Samantha St. Claire

  The Sawtooth Range

  Kat's Law

  High Valley Promise

  Comes the Winter

  Redeeming Lies

  A Portrait of Dawn

  A Hartmann Ranch Christmas (Coming Soon)