A Matter of Heart

by Tracie Peterson

  “Mother, please,” Jessica protested but not too sincerely.

  Mother laughed. “I’m not so old that I can’t remember how it was to have young men interested in me. I can see that Mr. Gable has a strong interest in you.”

  “He doesn’t plan to stay around here for long,” Jessica reminded her. “Don’t go marrying me off just yet.”

  “Your father told me of Mr. Gable’s plans to one day work in Washington, D.C., but that doesn’t worry me. There are trains between here and the capital.” She looked at Jessica and shrugged. “I rather enjoy train travel, and I’ve heard that Washington is a wonderful city, with all the amenities you love.”

  “There you go again,” Jessica chided. “I’ve not even had a proper outing with Mr. Gable, and already you have us married and living in Washington. Really, Mother, you are quite the hopeless romantic.”

  Her mother laughed and headed for the door. “I suppose a lifetime with your father has done that to me. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll have Lupe bring up your flowers and also something to eat. I’m sure you’re going to need your strength for the days to come. After all, you don’t want to still be weak when Sunday after next rolls around.”

  Chapter 13

  “We should tell Robert what’s happened,” Alice said, still looking quite worried.

  “We should,” Marty agreed. “It’s important that the menfolk know about the possibility of others finding us. I know William will want to know. He doesn’t take chances when it comes to the safety of his family.”

  Alice wrung her hands together. “I can’t help but worry that Mr. Morgan might have been watched. Someone could have easily followed him here, and he’d be no wiser for it.” Alice’s face paled, and her tone revealed her fear.

  Marty patted her arm. “Don’t fret, at least not until we’re sure there’s something to fret about. I don’t know exactly how he found us. He wouldn’t say.”

  “I’m so afraid,” Alice said in a hushed tone. “We aren’t safe anymore.”

  “Nonsense. No one is going to try to hurt us here. We’ve family and friends aplenty, and Texans don’t take kindly to anyone who threatens the well-being of their womenfolk.” Marty shook her head and stared off into the crowd where she’d last seen her husband. “I know Jake will refuse the offer, and then Morgan will have no choice but to return to Colorado alone.”

  “I hope you’re right, but I still can’t help being afraid.” Alice moved her hand upward to touch the fading scar on her right cheek. “After all this time, it seems strange that Mr. Morgan would show up now. I want my family to be safe. I had so hoped it was over.”

  “You’re borrowing trouble. As I said,” Marty said, softening her tone, “Mr. Morgan didn’t come here to harm you or your family. He wants Jake to return to Colorado. He no doubt is getting back on his feet and wants Jake’s help in recreating his empire. But Jake won’t go.”

  “I understand that,” Alice admitted, “but you know there are plenty who would harm us. All they’d have to do is get wind of Mr. Morgan’s plans to find us and follow him. I’m going to tell Robert. He should know there’s a chance of trouble.”

  “I agree that he should know, but, Alice, please try not to worry. We’ll be fine.”

  “Alice!” a feminine voice called out.

  Turning in the direction of the cry, Marty found Alice’s mother, stepfather, and brother making their way to join Alice. Mother and daughter embraced, and the earlier fears seemed to give way to the joyous reunion.

  “Mother, I’m so glad to see you.” The relief in Alice’s voice was apparent.

  “Well, we knew this would be quite the affair, and it seemed reasonable to ride the train over. Roy gets some free passes from time to time for his work with the railroad and freight.” She threw her husband an admiring smile.

  Marty thought the man seemed quite happy, and the previously widowed Ravinia Chesterfield James looked positively aglow. Even Simon seemed to fit right in. The couple hadn’t been married all that long, but already it was clear that they were a family.

  “And look at you,” Alice said to her young brother. “I think you’ve grown ten inches since I last saw you.”

  “I am getting taller,” Simon replied. “Pa says he’ll have to put a brick on my head to slow me down.”

  They laughed at this, and Marty was happy to hear that Simon was calling Mr. James Pa. The boy needed a father in his life, for his own had never been there for him.

  “Pa, can we go watch the bronc riders?” Simon asked, quickly forgetting about his sister.

  “Sure, son. We’ll go in a minute. Just be patient.” Simon clearly looked disappointed but said nothing.

  Alice’s mother looked to Marty. “I understand from Alice that you, too, have a new baby.”

  “Yes. John Jacob is just a little older than your grandson.”

  “John Jacob sounds like a fine name,” Roy James interjected. “A strong name. That’s always good for a boy.”

  Marty nodded. “We named him after my father and Jake . . . well, really after Jake’s grandfather. The baby’s sleeping just there on the blanket with his older sister.”

  Ravinia stepped aside to gaze upon the baby. “He’s beautiful and so is she. What a joy they must be.”

  Marty laughed. “Johanna looks angelic when she sleeps, but when she’s awake she is like a Texas twister, wreaking havoc wherever it sets down.”

  They all chuckled at this, causing Johanna to stir slightly. Marty couldn’t imagine why their laughter would awaken the child when all the noise of the crowd hadn’t. Perhaps she worried subconsciously that someone was having fun without her.

  “And your older boys? The ones you adopted?” Ravinia asked.

  “They are doing well. They’re just over at the pecan vendor’s stand. Jake sent them there with a little spending money. I’m sure they’ll return stuffed to the brim with nuts.”

  “They could be interested in far worse things,” Alice’s mother said with a smile.

  Johanna seemed to settle back to sleep, so Marty motioned them away from the blanket.

  “It’s so good to see you. Will you be staying in town?”

  “No. We plan to take the early evening train back to Dallas. Roy is teaching Sunday school tomorrow.”

  Marty nodded. “Well, I know you’re anxious to meet that new grandbaby of yours, so don’t let me keep you. He’s quite a handsome boy.”

  “Yes!” Ravinia said enthusiastically. “I can hardly wait to hold my grandson.”

  “That’s all she’s talked about since the babe was born,” Roy declared. “I figured we had to get up here if I was gonna have any rest at all.”

  “It seemed that everything conspired against me to get here. If it wasn’t one problem, it was another. I’m still bound and determined to come stay for a few weeks. Maybe next summer.”

  “You will be welcome to stay with us as long as you’d like,” Alice told her.

  Marty added, “And if the Barnetts run out of room, you can come stay with us. Our household is a sight noisier, but you’d be welcome just the same.”

  “See there, Ravinia.” Roy gave her a gentle elbow to the ribs. “I told you they would be happy to have you and Simon.”

  “Well, I do want to make certain I spend plenty of time getting to know my grandson,” she said in a serious tone. “A few years back I never thought this day would come, and now that it has, I want to enjoy it to the fullest. Now, where’s my grandson?”

  Alice laughed. “Robert is watching over him just now, but I’m sure he will be happy to see you three. We were just talking of making a trip to Dallas so you could meet little Wills.”

  After they’d gone, Marty gazed around the crowd. Here and there she recognized old friends, but there was no sign of Jake or of Mr. Morgan. She was beginning to worry about what might have taken place during their meeting. It surely wouldn’t take that long to hear Morgan’s proposal and refuse it. She saw her boys returning just then an
d momentarily forgot about anything being amiss.

  “Look, Mama, we got roasted pecans,” ten-year-old Wyatt announced. His brothers—Sam, nine, and Ben, seven—followed close behind.

  “These have sugar and cinnamon baked on ’em,” Ben announced, holding up a small spiraled cone of newspaper. Inside were a handful of the sweet nuts. “Try ’em, Mama.”

  Marty smiled at the threesome and sampled their treats. “They are delicious.”

  “I think we should plant some pecan trees,” Wyatt said. “Then we could have our own all the time.”

  “Nut trees can be a lot of hard work. When they bear, you have to pick up the nuts from the ground, then dry them, and sometimes even husk them before you can get to the shell. Remember the black walnut tree at Auntie Laura’s house?”

  The boys nodded. “But that was fun,” Sam said. “I like stompin’ on the green balls and seeing the black balls with the nuts come out.”

  “And it made our hands black,” Ben added, as though that were a particularly good point.

  “Yes, so while I agree that nuts are delicious, we might be better off to focus on raising cattle.”

  “Papa’s gonna teach me to rope a steer,” Ben told her. “He said we could do it when we get home.”

  “Well, roping takes a lot of practice, but I’m sure you’ll master it quickly.” Marty smiled at the boy. Johanna began to stir and then sat up, rubbing sleep from her eyes. The baby slept on even as Marty lifted him and put him in the perambulator. “Boys, fold up our blanket here and bring it along. We need to find your father.”

  Johanna was all smiles as Marty hoisted the girl onto her hip. “Just look at you, sleepyhead. Your hair is all mussed.”

  The little girl laughed and patted Marty’s cheeks. “Mama go now.”

  “Yes, we’re gonna go find Papa.”

  Marty turned to Wyatt and Sam, who had completed folding the blanket. “Just tuck it into that pack Papa affixed to the back of the baby buggy. Wyatt, will you please push the carriage for me? Sam can carry your pecans.”

  “So long as he doesn’t eat ’em all,” Wyatt said, handing his cone over.

  “I won’t eat ’em all,” Sam assured him. “Just a few.”

  “You got your own,” Wyatt said, taking hold of the buggy’s handle.

  “Boys,” Marty interjected, “no fighting.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” Sam and Wyatt said in unison.

  Marty didn’t go far before running into Alice and her family once again. “I wonder if the children could stay here with you and your mother for a moment. I need to go see what’s happened to Jake.”

  “Of course they can,” Alice said. She looked to her mother. “You don’t mind, do you?”

  “Of course not,” Ravinia James replied.

  Alice frowned. “But maybe you shouldn’t be the one to go. We can send Robert. Why don’t you wait until he and Roy get back? They’ve just gone to fetch us some drinks.”

  “I don’t want Robert to have to leave his family for this.” Marty looked back in the direction Mr. Morgan and Jake had gone. Just then the baby began to fuss. No doubt he was hungry.

  “Well, there’s Austin. Why don’t you ask him to go? Then you can tend to John Jacob, and I’ll keep an eye on Johanna. The boys will be just fine.” Alice smiled. “They are good boys, and look, they’re already playing with Simon. It’s been a long time since they’ve seen each other, so they’ll keep occupied telling one another their adventures.”

  The boys were caught up in a game of marbles over to one side, where the dirt was level. They were carrying on a lively conversation as they knelt in the dust to eye their next move. Oh, to be that innocent of trouble, Marty thought.

  She gave a sigh and made up her mind. It would be better for a man to go in search of Jake. Then, if there was to be any trouble, Jake wouldn’t be distracted with worries about his wife. “I suppose I could ask Austin. He would obviously be the better one to intercede if something has gone wrong.”

  Alice waved Austin over. Marty could see that he was preparing to leave and hated to ask him for this favor if he planned to head out right away.

  “Afternoon, ladies. I was just heading out to check some of the area ranches. I don’t want the rustlers taking advantage of this gathering.”

  “That’s a good idea,” Marty said. “But before you leave, could you help me with something?”

  He looked at her with a question-raising brow. “And what would that be?”

  Marty hurriedly explained, then said, “They went in the direction of the train yard, but I can’t be sure where they are now. I’m just worried that Mr. Morgan will try to bully Jake into something.”

  “I can’t imagine your husband letting anyone bully him into anything, but if it makes you feel better, Mrs. Wythe, I’d be happy to help.”

  “Thank you. It would mean a lot to me.”

  “Then it means a lot to me, too. I’ll go find him and tell him you’re in need of his company.”

  Marty watched Austin disappear into the crowd. The band struck up a Sousa march just then. It almost seemed as if they were heralding Austin’s search. Marty shivered for no reason. She knew she was being silly. There was no reason to worry about Morgan and the meeting. Jake was indeed as strong a man as Austin had implied. He would never let Morgan have the upper hand.

  “Look, Marty,” Alice said, holding up a large packet of letters tied together with a string. “Mother brought these. They were the final business correspondences of my father. They were in the box that was shipped to her from Colorado.”

  Looking at the letters, Marty couldn’t help but wonder if they might provide any better understanding of what had gone on in the past. She knew Alice was still trying to fit the pieces together. Maybe the letters were the final element needed.

  “Have you read them?” she asked, looking first to Ravinia and then to Alice. Both women shook their heads.

  “I never saw a need, since they were marked as business correspondence,” Ravinia answered. “I thought to throw them away and then decided I’d let Alice be the one to either keep them or discard them.”

  “Oh, I want to read them,” Alice declared, adding, “as soon as we get home.” She tucked the large stack of letters into her picnic basket. “Oh good, here come Robert and Roy.”

  Marty said nothing more, but she couldn’t help wondering what the letters contained. She hoped Alice would be quick to let her know the contents. Maybe the letters would explain everything that had happened in Colorado.

  Austin Todd waited until the older bearded man he’d known as Cuker departed. He could see Jake sitting on the edge of a stone bench. The look on his face suggested something bad had taken place during his encounter with Morgan.

  “Mind if I join you?” Austin asked.

  Jake shook his head. “I don’t at all. In fact, I’m glad it’s you.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “I want your advice on something, but first I need to explain my past to you.”

  Austin leaned back against some fencing. “Sure. What do you need me to know?”

  “Well, you know Marty and I lived in Denver for a time. I worked at the bank for Paul Morgan. He was good to us—always giving me gifts. He arranged a house for me since I was marrying and gave me a really great deal on the mortgage and interest. He filled it with fine things and told me the contents of the house were his wedding gifts to me and Marty.”

  Jake fell silent for a moment, but Austin could see he had more to say. “Morgan advanced me in the bank very fast. I was branch manager in no time at all. I replaced Alice’s father after he was killed couriering bank papers. That’s when Alice was cut up.”

  “I remember you telling me about it, but why are you bringing that up now?”

  Jake looked most uncomfortable. “A man named Smith was constantly following her after she healed from the attack and was released from the hospital. He pestered her at every chance and demanded she find those papers. She and M
arty went to search for them but found nothing. They even went back to the house were Alice and her father had lived. A new tenant living there told Alice that the only things left in the house were her father’s personal effects and correspondence. She had mailed everything to Alice’s mother. Now keep in mind that Alice thought her mother was dead, because her father had told her so. It was quite a shock for her.”

  “I can imagine.” Austin shook his head. “So this is far more complicated than you told me before.”

  “It is, and I’m sorry to have to fill you in on everything at once, but this entire matter has just taken a new turn.”

  “And that’s why you wanted to speak to me?”

  “Yes. Morgan is determined that he needs to find those certificates before his adversary does. He wants me to come back to Colorado and help him, since I worked with many of the banking customers and employees. He’s quite adamant that I assist him.”

  “And if you don’t?”

  “There will be problems.”

  “And that’s why you wanted to tell me all of this. Are you thinking I might have answers?”

  “I’m hoping you’ll have advice for me,” Jake said with a heavy sigh.

  “Advice on what exactly?”

  Jake looked up with a forlorn expression. “On how to stay out of jail.”

  Chapter 14

  Feeling nearly recovered from her bout of sickness, Jessica sat reading by the fireplace. The day was warm enough that a fire wasn’t needed, but this chair was Jessica’s favorite. Upholstered in a soft mauve color, the fan-backed chair was far and away the most comfortable. With an added ottoman, Jessica felt like a queen on her throne. Of course, she never told anyone that and would now have been quite embarrassed if she had. She’d given a lot of thought to how she might go about changing the way people saw her. Jessica wanted desperately to have people love her and respect her just as they did Mrs. Barnett or even Mother, and taking on queenly airs wasn’t the way to accomplish that.

  She was looking at the words of Matthew chapter five and pondering the meaning of the Sermon on the Mount when her mother ushered visitors into the front room.