Hands brushed her shoulders, turning her around. The touch was so familiar she didn’t have to question for a moment who had followed her. Jake didn’t say anything as he pulled her close. Burying her face in his shoulder, she knew she should tell him to leave, that she’d come to a decision that was best for all of them—a decision that would allow him to remain a minister and Morgan to become a whole man again. But the words lodged inside, refusing to come forward.
“Katherine, you’ve been the strong one for so long. You can lean for a while.” He stroked her hair, feeling the moisture from her tears dampening his shirt. As he comforted her, he thought of his best friend lying in the next room. The steps he’d taken tonight were only the first of the even more painful ones to follow.
The next month was one of recuperation and growing unease. The court had allowed Katherine and Morgan a temporary continuance because of his injury. Jake had stood and watched while the telegrams had been sent and then answered.
Even with the respite, each day of improvement brought a new round of questions without answers. Katherine made sure Morgan received plenty of visitors rather than be caught alone with him. She avoided almost everyone, keeping her door firmly locked to intruders.
Now a fierce knocking interrupted that calm. Looking up from the wretched books, Katherine managed a sigh as she unlocked the door. Sadie almost fell into her office.
“Katherine, I think it’s the baby.”
“Now?” Katherine’s mouth opened in shock. “But Rebecca’s not due for another month!”
“I’m not sure the baby knows that.”
“The doctor—”
“I’ve already sent David for him.”
Katherine nodded in relief. “What should we do?”
“Hattie and Beth are with Rebecca now.”
“Beth?” New concern raced across Katherine’s face.
“She seems calmer than you or I.”
“I’ve never been at a birth,” Katherine whispered. “When Beth was born, my parents bundled me up and sent me to my grandmother’s house. I didn’t come home until she was almost a month old.”
“This is probably the closest I’ll ever get to having a baby,” Sadie replied wistfully. Looking up, she caught Katherine’s look of concern. “I know the baby will be Rebecca and David’s. But I plan to be a doting grandmama.”
“Then he or she will be a very lucky baby.”
“We’d better get upstairs or we’ll miss the whole event.” Sadie managed a ragged laugh, trying to mask her own longings.
Together they paced the upstairs sitting room until Doctor Griffin arrived. He went directly to Rebecca’s room, shutting the door firmly behind him. When he emerged, his look was one of concern.
“Doctor?” Sadie watched his face, instinctively guessing that something was wrong.
“She’s young but healthy.” So far, nothing bad. “However, I’m concerned by the timing. Her labor is progressing quickly, which is good under the circumstances. But I’m not certain why the baby’s coming so soon.”
“What can we do, Doctor?” Sadie asked.
“I’ll need an assistant. Have either of you helped at a birth before?”
Gulping, they stared at each other in dismay and shook their heads with regret.
“I’ll help you,” Hattie stated, her loud voice sweeping over them all.
“You?” Katherine and Sadie echoed in unison.
“How many babies you birthed, Miss Sadie?”
Sadie shook her head helplessly.
“Well, I know how many Miss Katherine’s birthed. I’ll do the helpin’.” Without further discussion, she swept into the room, throwing orders over her shoulder. “Bring up some fresh linens and hot coffee.”
“What do you do with the coffee?” Sadie questioned as they stared at Hattie blankly.
“Drink it.” Slamming the door behind herself and the doctor, Hattie didn’t see their slack-jawed faces.
Dawn crept over the plains and through the white clapboards of the saloon. Jake was out cold on a wing chair. Katherine and Sadie sprawled out across the settee and love seat in the upstairs parlor, still awake but groggy. All the girls in the house waited anxiously as well. It wasn’t often they were nearby for the birth of a baby. Draped around the room, they waited while David paced for them all.
The cry was so faint at first that Katherine thought she’d imagined it. But as she sat up, Sadie did, also. Wondering, they stared at each other. David ran toward the bedroom, but Hattie didn’t emerge with the child. As they waited with indrawn breaths, a second tiny set of lungs added its voice to the first.
David shouted out loud, and Jake awoke with a start as the girls hugged each other and danced around the room. Katherine and Sadie said simultaneously, “Twins?”
Hattie opened the door to David. “Your wife will be ready to see you soon.” She paused for effect, loving every moment of her part in the drama. “So will your son and your daughter.”
Whoops filled the upstairs, and Katherine met Jake’s gaze above the din. This was a moment to be treasured, one they had no guarantee of ever sharing together. Jake took Katherine’s hand, his voice low with emotion. “I’ll go get Morgan. He’ll want to see the babies.”
Katherine nodded without speaking, knowing the words couldn’t have edged past the lump in her throat. Within minutes the door to the bedroom opened again, and Hattie ushered David inside. They all waited impatiently as the door remained closed. Katherine glanced up to see Jake’s firm steps and Morgan’s halting ones as they entered the sitting room. In pain, but determined, Morgan seemed pleased to be included.
“They haven’t brought the babies out yet,” she told Morgan as he sank into the chair closest to hers.
A faint sheen of perspiration covered his face. “Good. Didn’t want to miss anything.”
Katherine exchanged a brief glance with Jake before replying, “You didn’t.”
When David finally emerged, he held one baby in his arms, and Hattie followed him with the other.
“My son,” David announced proudly. The women gathered around the babies, wonderment on their faces. Only Annette hung back at the sidelines. The suspicions Katherine couldn’t shake about the girl rose up again as she watched her. As some of the women drifted toward Hattie and the baby girl, Annette finally approached David and the tiny bundle he held.
“You ready?” Jake asked Morgan, distracting Katherine’s attention.
“Yep.” Painfully Morgan hauled himself to his feet, and together they moved slowly toward David and the baby.
“Congratulations, old man,” Morgan managed in a voice that was close to his normal one.
David flushed, aware of his youth, but proud of his new fatherhood. “I can’t believe there’s two of them.”
“I imagine it was a surprise to everyone,” Morgan commented dryly.
Katherine watched his reaction to the babies, but her attention was diverted as she saw the pure longing surface on Annette’s face when the baby grasped her finger, hanging on tight.
“You found a friend,” Morgan commented.
“He’s so tiny,” Annette whispered.
“That’s ’cause he’s part of a set,” Morgan returned, winking at David.
Annette glanced up quickly at David. “But he’s beautiful. They both are.”
“Thank you.”
Katherine wondered if David might burst the seams of his shirt with pride. It was touching. The only ones missing were the grandparents. Sadie was the only one there to represent them all, but fortunately she was besotted with the babies.
When the group finally broke up, David returned the baby to the cradle, and Katherine realized they were one cradle short. Hattie assured her that a drawer would work fine for the time being. Morgan shuffled back to his room, but there was a new spirit in his hobbled gait.
Word of the twins’ birth spread over the area like a summer wildfire. Moral justice was one thing. The sight of two nearly identical babie
s was another. People came to gaze and bring gifts. Katherine carefully stored the offerings away, knowing they would provide a good start for the young couple when they found their first home.
Bessie Johnson brought her own cradle for them to use. Katherine had protested, but Bessie insisted, and now each child had a cradle to rest in. The lovingly handcrafted bit of furniture took on even more significance. Acceptance. It was slow in coming, but it was gathering intensity. Only Able and Rebecca’s parents stayed away. It was the source of greatest pain and the impetus for Sadie’s most drastic action yet.
Chapter 41
“Sadie, you need to rethink this!”
“I’ll only ask one more time. Will you give me shelter until I can find my own?”
Katherine stared helplessly at Sadie, who’d announced that she planned to leave Able. “This isn’t something you should do on a whim.”
“Hardly a whim.” Sadie paced the length of Katherine’s study. “I’ve been unhappy since I married Able. The last year has only brought it all into focus.”
“We’re all rather emotional with the new babies—”
“They’re a month old, Katherine, and Able still refuses to acknowledge their existence. I won’t live like this. I have money of my own. If there was a hotel, I’d go there. That’s why I’m asking you. If you’ll put me up, I’ll pay handsomely until I can have a house built.”
“I wouldn’t dream of accepting your money, Sadie. This has nothing to do with rent. I just think you should be awfully sure before you make a move like this.”
“I’m sure. It will be better for both of us. Able can send for a new wife—one who suits his standards.”
Katherine heard the pain Sadie tried to disguise and sighed inwardly. What a horrendous mess their lives had become. “Of course you’re welcome here. But before you make your final decision, please talk to Able.”
“Thank you, Katherine. I’ll probably return tonight.”
She left, and Katherine stared after her, dismayed by her friend’s pain, not certain she’d done the right thing. Walking to her window, she saw Jake going from his house to the church. Rapping sharply on the window, she got his attention. The windowsill was frozen shut, and she couldn’t pull the glass up, so she motioned to him to come inside. He shouted that he’d be right in, and she paced until he arrived.
“Problem?” he asked.
“You’re perceptive.”
“Sadie ran away crying, and you looked like a ghost when you knocked on the window. Doesn’t take a genius to figure out something’s wrong.”
She quickly outlined her conversation with Sadie.
“Hell, what else can go wrong?” Jake slumped into the chair opposite hers.
“Don’t ask. It’ll happen tomorrow.”
“So what are you going to do?”
“Figure out how to stretch this house a little bigger, I guess,” she answered.
“I don’t think you called me up here to get out a hammer.”
“No, I was hoping you could talk to Sadie, persuade her that she’s on a foolhardy mission.”
“And if that doesn’t work?” Jake stood again.
“If we lose the lawsuit, it won’t matter. We’ll have to build a bigger house with more rooms.”
His face tensed. “So you’ve made a decision after all.”
“No, I haven’t decided anything. Only that I’ve got a horde of people to worry about, and they may not have a roof over their heads in a few weeks.”
The door to the study hid the figure that had just arrived and now stood outside in the shadows.
“It’s time to worry about us instead. What more proof do you need?”
Katherine stared at him without speaking, all of her conflicting feelings spelled out on her face.
“Now, Katherine. We can’t wait any longer.”
The figure slipped from its position outside the door and disappeared. Jake continued to stare at Katherine, the threat unseen, unacknowledged.
The main room in the saloon spilled over with cowboys. A new trail drive had ridden into town that day, and men who hadn’t seen a saloon or a pretty woman in months now enjoyed both. Huge sets of mirrors reflected pools of light from the kerosene globes surrounding the bar, while the tinny piano ground out lively songs. Katherine watched over the place with an unusual degree of caution. A new bunch of cowhands often meant trouble. Morgan was only on the floor a few hours each evening, seated at the poker table since he couldn’t stand at the roulette wheel.
Katherine knew she couldn’t count on him to waylay any trouble. He was getting around fairly well, but the pain in his feet wouldn’t subside for months, the doctor had said. To a casual observer, Morgan looked no different. But Katherine knew better.
Luckily, even though the cowboys were rowdy, none had done any more than the usual hell-raising. Relaxing, she took in the size of the crowd, deciding she could wait awhile to sing. When Jake pushed open the double doors to the saloon, she didn’t even flinch. Since Morgan’s accident, he’d become a regular visitor.
Katherine had tried to discourage him, but he’d been immovable. Jake had always counted on Morgan to protect Katherine, but since his friend’s illness, Jake had taken over that role. Katherine had ranted, raved, pleaded, and cajoled, but every night Jake showed up. Deep down, she’d been glad that he cared more about her than anyone’s opinion.
Frowning, she noticed that the poker table was empty and wondered if Morgan was all right. He wouldn’t tell her different, she knew, even if his feet were ready to fall off.
“Big crowd,” Jake commented.
“New trail drive in town.”
“Any troublemakers?”
“You’re beginning to sound like a floorwalker. You looking for a new job?”
“Could be.”
The teasing smile slipped from her face. “Problems?”
“I went out to the Brownings’ house today.”
She swallowed. She had suggested he do so, of course. Before she could ask what happened, a movement from the corner of her eye caught her attention. “Oh, no.”
Jake looked up, caught the direction of her gaze, and turned. “Hell.”
“Appropriate observation,” Katherine murmured before moving forward. Sadie stood at the entrance to the saloon, her uncertainty worn like a flaming cloak.
Drawing close, Katherine could see that Sadie was about to collapse. “You didn’t have to come in this way. Hattie’s back in the kitchen.”
“I know. It’s just that I wanted to see you and…” Her voice trailed off. Never having entered the gambling rooms, she obviously hadn’t expected them to be so overwhelming.
“Well, you’re here now. Let’s get you a hot cup of tea.”
“I don’t intend to interrupt your work,” Sadie protested.
Katherine glanced at the piano player who’d played her introduction for the second time. “You could sit with Jake for a few minutes while I sing. There’s a table right next to the piano, and I can sing there instead of on the stage.”
“I’d like that.”
Jake rose and switched tables, managing to greet Sadie as though it were an everyday occurrence for the minister and the church elder’s wife to be sitting together in the saloon. Having already judged the crowd, Katherine had instructed the pianist to play her livelier selections. These men wanted entertainment, not sentiment.
Launching into the first song, Katherine dismissed the sudden heat that blazed in too many eyes, the leers and catcalls. It was part of the job, she told herself. Just a job.
By the second song, she was almost numb to the distractions. Until she spotted Able Browning pushing open the doors to the saloon. Her voice faltered for a moment before she forced it to return to its normal pitch. He strode toward Sadie, and Katherine watched her friend and Jake jump up as he approached.
Then she heard the creaking. It sounded much like the lurching that had bandied the roof of the church during the tornado. But that was crazy
. This wasn’t tornado season. Before she could figure out what was happening, she saw Jake and Sadie flying toward her. Jake reached her first, pushing her out of the way as the huge chandelier crashed to the floor.
Gasping in shock, Katherine clung to Jake, who held her close for a moment. He ran his hands quickly over her, ensuring that she was unharmed, before leaping to his feet. Katherine sat up slowly, horrified to see Sadie trapped under the broken glass and gutted globes of the light fixture. Able and more than a dozen men were trying to lift it off. Jake had disappeared.
Raising her gaze, Katherine saw Jake run up the stairs. A black-coated figure darted out of sight, and Katherine covered her mouth with a sudden gasp. Oh, God, please no!
She heard a moan and pulled herself up, trying to see between all the bodies. What if Sadie had been killed in her place? She watched the men work quickly to get Sadie out. Attaching a rope to the fixture, they threw the coil over a beam and pulled on the huge chandelier, raising it from the floor. When it cleared Sadie’s body, Able pulled her free, cradling her limp form in his arms.
Katherine bit down her own cry, surprised to see Beth at her side, clasping her hand. “Has anyone gone for the doctor?”
“David went.” Beth gripped her hand more tightly. “She’ll be all right.”
“Where did you get such wisdom?” Katherine asked shakily.
“From you.”
Gathering her own courage, Katherine approached Able. “There’s a sitting room just through the hallway with a couch we can lay her on.” Expecting an argument, she was surprised when Able complied, picking up his wife and following Katherine.
Desperately wondering what was going on upstairs with Jake, she was torn. But in moments the doctor rushed in with David at his heels. Luckily the doctor had been at home only a few doors away. “Could you clear the room, please?”
Reluctantly the customers departed and waited while the doctor began examining Sadie. Katherine wanted to offer words of comfort, but she doubted Able wanted to hear them from her. David, however, had clasped his father’s shoulder, and Able accepted the comfort. From the saloon Katherine could hear the sounds of the men hauling the chandelier away, but she had no further clue about Jake.
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