Pioneer Love: Damaged Hearts Head West: Mail Order Bride 5 Bundle

by Indiana Wake

  In a flash of lightning, a black whip leapt out of the grass and streaked toward the horse. Before anyone could say or do anything, the horse reared onto its back legs with a rattlesnake dangling from its ankle. Mercy sat deeper in her saddle, but the horse bucked and thrashed. She grabbed for its mane, but she didn’t move fast enough. She lost her balance and rolled backwards, out of the saddle and over the horse’s rump onto the ground.

  Even from her place by the wagon, Grace heard the gut-wrenching snap of breaking bone. Jackson jumped off his horse in an instant and caught the stricken animal by the bridle. Grace ran to Mercy’s side and knelt down. Mercy’s leg stuck out from her body at a grotesque angle, and Grace reeled from the shock.

  Thomas appeared at her side. “Quick! We have to get her into the wagon. We’ll drive her back to town and get her to the doctor.”

  Grace surveyed the scene. “How are we going to get her into the wagon?”

  Thomas didn’t answer. In one quick movement, he scooped up Mercy and carried her like a sleeping child to the wagon. He laid her on the bed of blankets and covered her with another. “Let’s go.”

  Grace climbed into the wagon next to Mercy, and Emma joined her. Jackson held all three horses by their bridles. “You go ahead. I’ll put these horses away and catch up with you in town.”

  Thomas sprang into the driver’s seat and grabbed the reins. No one looked at the scenery on the way back to town. Grace and Emma stared down at Mercy lying so still and broken in the wagon bed. Thomas stared straight in front of him and said not a word.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Honor

  GRACE STARTED AWAKE out of a deep sleep and stared around the room. There was Mercy, asleep in the bed, exactly where Grace left her. She passed her hand over her eyes and sighed before she noticed Thomas sitting in a chair next to her. “What are you doing here?”

  “I was watching over Mercy while you slept,” he replied. “You’ve been asleep almost sixteen hours.”

  Grace jumped out of her chair. “But that’s impossible. I’m supposed to be taking care of her, not falling over at the slightest sign of weakness.”

  “This is hardly a sign of weakness,” Thomas returned. “You’ve been taking care of Mercy for almost three weeks. You must be truly exhausted to sleep like that. You should take better care of yourself.”

  Grace shook herself and took a deep breath. “I can’t stop now. Mercy needs me.”

  “You won’t be able to take care of her at all if you don’t take time to rest. Here, I brought you something to eat.” He pointed to a tray on the table.

  Grace turned away. “That’s very kind of you, but I can’t stop now.”

  “I thought Mercy’s leg was mending after that procedure the doctors gave her,” Thomas remarked. “I thought she was getting better.”

  “She was,” Grace replied. “That doctor we called up from Denver did an amazing job fixing her leg. He says she’s going to make a full recovery and no one will ever know she broke it.”

  “That’s wonderful,” Thomas exclaimed. “That’s better than you ever dared to hope for.”

  “But his fee cost me every cent I have,” Grace told him. “Jackson has been kind enough to cover our hotel costs but they have told me that the rooms are booked from tomorrow onwards, but I don’t have any money left to buy food for Mercy and Emma and myself or other necessities to take care of my sister.”

  Before Thomas could answer, a light rap sounded on the door. Grace went to open it, but when she turned the knob, she found only a slip of paper on the landing outside.

  “What does it say?” Thomas asked.

  Grace covered her mouth with her hand. “I knew this was coming. The hotel is kicking us out. We have until six pm tonight to leave. Now what am I going to do?”

  Thomas touched her arm. “Don’t worry about a thing. You can stay at my house.”

  Grace smacked her lips. “You know we can’t do that. You’re a single man, and we’re single women. It wouldn’t be appropriate for us to stay at your house.”

  “But I won’t be there,” Thomas told her. “I’ll stay out at the ranch with Jackson. You’ll have the place to yourselves. You can milk the cow and take the eggs from the hen house and pick the greens from the garden. You can use the flour and sugar and salt in the store house. You’ll have everything you need until Mercy gets better.”

  A sucking sound drew their attention to the bed, and Grace flew to Mercy’s side. She laid her hand on her sister’s forehead. “Fever! This is the worst thing that could happen right now.”

  “It’s not....?” Thomas didn’t finish his sentence.

  Grace nodded. “It’s influenza. Quick! Ride to the doctor. There’s not a moment to lose.”

  Thomas turned away, but then he stopped. “Don’t you think it’s time you wrote to your parents? Don’t you think they would want to know their daughter is at death’s door?”

  “I already did that,” Grace replied. “I wrote to Emma’s parents and my parents the same day Mercy fell from that horse. They’re on their way here now, but the trip takes weeks.”

  Thomas nodded again and turned toward the door. “I should have known you would do the right thing. I would hate to see Mercy die without her parents at her side.”

  “Sir,” Grace addressed Thomas with utmost seriousness. “She will live and not die, and declare the wonderful works of God!”

  Thomas was embarrassed by his own faithless words, but moved by the resilience of this beautiful woman’s spirit. The challenges she had overcome through her years of rejection had forged an indomitable spirit within her.

  “I dread the day my stepmother arrives,” Grace went on, “but it was the only thing to do. I couldn’t let anything happen to Mercy without letting them know where she was and what was going on. And Emma’s parents will want to give their consent before she marries Jackson. They don’t even know where she is. They think she’s in Chicago visiting her aunt.”

  “Did you inform them in your telegram that Emma wanted to get married?” Thomas asked.

  “She begged me not to tell them,” Grace replied. “I wanted to tell them, but she’s worried they’ll reject Jackson’s suit after the way he rejected me. She wants to wait until they get here before she tells them the truth.”

  “And you went along with that?” Thomas asked.

  “I didn’t want to,” Grace admitted. “But it is her marriage. She wants to wait until they meet Jackson before she tells them they plan to get married. She was distraught when I said I was wiring her parents, but I insisted. She begged me not to tell them, to give her a chance to explain everything to them herself. I had to agree.”

  Thomas shook his head. “That’s putting it the wrong way around. They shouldn’t plan to get married until they ask her parents’ permission.”

  “You know how these love matches go,” Grace told him. “Nothing has gone according to plan since we got off the train.”

  He chuckled and turned to the door. “That’s for certain.”

  Grace rushed to his side and laid her hand on his arm. “Thomas?”

  “What is it?” he asked.

  “Thank you,” she exclaimed. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me— for us, I mean. I didn’t want to believe you really cared about me, but I can’t let you walk out that door without telling you how grateful I am. I don’t know what I would have done these last few weeks without your constant support. I can’t thank you enough.”

  His gaze burned into her eyes. “I’m the one who should be thanking you, Grace. You don’t know what you’ve done to my life. You’ve given me hope I thought I would never experience again. You’ve given me a reason to live. If I can win your affection, even in a small, friendly way, I know God cares about me and hasn’t turned His back on me. As long as you’re in the world, nothing can ever be wrong again.”

  Grace blushed and took her hand off his arm. “I know you care about me, but you have to understand why I can’t retur
n your feelings. I came to Wyoming to marry your brother, and he’s fallen in love with someone else. I couldn’t marry you.”

  “I’m not asking you to marry me,” Thomas replied. “I understand you’ve been hurt so many times you can’t believe my love is true. That’s all right. I’m happy just to be near you, to help you when you need me. If there is anything I can do to make your burden lighter, I’m happy to do it. That’s all I ask.”

  Grace smiled up into his face. “Thank you. You don’t know what it means to have you by my side.”

  He pressed her hand between both of his. “I wouldn’t be anywhere else.”

  He walked out of the room, and for a moment, Grace stared at the closed door. How did this happen? How did the greatest devastation of her life turn into her greatest joy? How could she ever explain to Thomas that she didn’t want to be anywhere in the world but at his side, too?

  He spoke the words that formed in her own heart every time he came near her. God cared for her and protected her and guided her toward the happiness and fulfillment He planned for her all along. For the first time in her wretched life, she knew that for certain. Thomas gave her hope and joy she never experienced before. She couldn’t let him disappear out of her life. But how could she hope to keep him, with her disgusting mask of a face?

  He asked her to marry him, but that was the act of a preacher trying to make up for his brother’s misdeed. He got to know her at Mercy’s bedside, but the day would eventually come when he fell for some Western beauty the same way Jackson did. She would hold herself ready in her heart for that day, and she would let him go with her natural good grace. She would wish him well, and she would never see him again.

  A tear sprang to her eye at the thought of losing him, but she didn’t have time to feel sorry for herself. She had a good life ahead of her, especially now that she was away from her stepmother. Cynthia’s image floated before her eyes, and Grace shuddered. She whirled away and rushed to Mercy’s bedside.

  She stroked her sister’s cheek. “I won’t let you die. Thomas will bring the doctor, and you’ll be all right.”

  The door swung open, and Thomas came back in with Emma at his heels. “The doctor’s on his way.”

  “Thank God!” Grace exclaimed.

  At that moment, a familiar voice shouted down the landing. “Where is she? Where’s my daughter?”

  Grace’s blood ran cold, but before she could move a muscle, the door crashed aside on its hinges and Cynthia Oakes barged into the room. She took one look at Mercy sweating and shivering under a pile of blankets and leveled her accusing finger at Grace.

  “This is all your fault,” she screeched. “You did this to my daughter. You always were jealous of her looks. You tried to kill her, didn’t you? You’ve been searching for a way to destroy her, and now you found it. I’ll have the Sheriff after you for this. You’ll be thrown into prison if I have anything to say about it.”

  Grace stared at her stepmother. Her father stood behind his wife, too shocked to say anything. Emma’s parents hovered on the landing and dared not enter the room.

  Grace’s lip started to quiver. “I didn’t do anything. I’ve been working night and day to nurse Mercy back to health, and I spent every penny I had to get a doctor to fix her leg. You can ask Emma if you don’t believe me.”

  “Don’t you talk back to me, you filthy little gutter-snipe!” Cynthia bellowed. “You dragged my innocent daughter out to the wild to die. Just wait until I get my hands on you. I’ll give you the worst beating you ever had in your life.”

  Cynthia took a step toward Grace with her claws bared, but Grace couldn’t fight back to defend herself. Weeks of anxiety and exhaustion overpowered her, and tears dropped onto her cheeks. “I didn’t do anything. You have to believe me.”

  Waves of grief and heartache washed over her, and before she could stop herself, she broke down in tears. She covered her face with her hands and howled. All at once, out of nowhere, the blessed arms of God encircled her and held her tight. They crushed the sobs from her body, and enfolded her in a warm blanket of love and protection.

  Thomas’s voice echoed in her ear. “How dare you speak that way to Grace? You may have attacked her before when she was friendless in the world, but I won’t stand by and let you do it here. Grace has given everything she had in the world to help Mercy, and her care and devotion saved Mercy’s life. You should be down on your knees thanking her instead of insulting her.”

  Grace peeked out of Thomas’s arms and saw Cynthia staring at him with her mouth open. No one ever stood up to her like that before, not even Mercy.

  “I’ve never seen anybody sacrifice themselves for another the way Grace has for Mercy,” Thomas went on. “I’ve never seen the spirit of Christian love and charity embodied in a human being the way I’ve seen it in Grace. No one is going to belittle or humiliate my precious Grace as long as I’m around. You’ll never cause my Grace any pain or misery again. I’ll protect her from you and from every other danger in the world as long as I’ve got breath in my body.”

  Grace stared up at him. None of the others could take their eyes off him. His cheeks burned with color, and his voice reverberated through her bones. He really meant it. She couldn’t believe it. He really did care for her the way she always dreamed some man would. He would protect her and defend her when no one else would. She let herself shrink into his embrace, and the care of the last several weeks melted from her heart.

  All of a sudden, Thomas let go of her and strode across the room. He walked straight past Cynthia and held out his hand to Grace’s father. “Mr. Oakes, we haven’t been formally introduced. I’m the Reverend Thomas Pikes. It’s an honor to meet you at last, and I would like to formally request the honor of your daughter’s hand in marriage.” He cast a quick glance over his shoulder. “If she’s willing, of course.”

  George Oakes shook Thomas’s hand. “I’m the one who’s honored. After the things you just said about my daughter, I’m delighted to give you my blessing. I always knew Grace would find a man who was worthy of her and who would love and care for her the way she deserves.”

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Dreams Come True

  JACKSON AND THOMAS stood side by side on the front porch of the ranch house. They wore identical suits with bow ties, and the mid-morning sun shone off their polished boots. Thomas’ belt buckle gleamed between his coat lapels. His friend Cecil Curtis stood on his other side, and another minister friend of his stood a few feet away. A door opened at the head of the stairs inside, and he and everyone else present looked up through the open door at a shimmering white vision on the upper landing.

  Grace squeezed her father’s arm tighter when she gazed down at Thomas through her veil. His eyes pierced her soul, and the rest of the world vanished from her mind. How many nights and days had she dreamed of this moment? How many times had she consoled herself that love and joy belonged to other women?

  He didn’t see her scars. He didn’t see her years of hardship and anguish. He didn’t see the tears she shed over the countless men who turned her down. He saw only her. He saw her radiant heart, her devoted affection. He loved her pure soul and her sincere godliness. All she had to do was remember his arms around her, and the peace and protection of his love washing her clean of care and despair.

  She floated down the stairs on a cloud and found herself standing in front of him. She turned and found her father in tears at her side. He sniffed and nodded when he placed her hand in Thomas’. She kissed his damp cheek and he took his place in line with the other guests.

  Grace didn’t hear a word of the ceremony. She kept her eyes on Thomas’ face. She read everything she needed to know about love and marriage and commitment in his piercing green eyes. At last, the minister said, “I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride.”

  Thomas lifted her veil, and nothing remained to separate them for the rest of their lives. He kissed her lightly on the lips, but then he pulled away and took her
by the hand. The bottomless depth of their connection could wait until they went home to their own house that night.

  Thomas turned her toward the guests, and their friends and families crowded around the happy couple. George blew his nose and wiped his face on his handkerchief. Emma hugged Grace and wiped her tears, and Mercy sniffed and sobbed on a chair by the door.

  Thomas shook hands with everybody—everybody except Cynthia, that is. Soon they were all sat at the table in the parlor celebrating with an enormous meal.

  Two hours later, after the feast broke up, Emma’s father, Henry Johnson, strode up to Thomas and shook his hand for the fifth time. “Thank you very much for your hospitality. I can’t thank you enough for arranging for us to stay out here at your brother’s ranch. It’s been a delightful experience, and my wife Nancy and I wish you and your bride all the happiness in the world.”

  Thomas bowed his head. “Thank you. I hope you find the same happiness soon with your own daughter’s wedding.”

  Henry stiffened. “My daughter won’t be getting married anytime soon. We’re taking her back to Boston with us.”

  Thomas’s eyes widened, and he glanced at Jackson. “But you know my brother…”

  “I know all about your brother,” Henry shot back. “I know your brother was engaged to marry Grace and even paid for her train fare out here, whereupon he fell madly in love with my daughter and rejected Grace under the most unacceptable circumstances.”

  Thomas lowered his eyes. “I admit it wasn’t the most ideal circumstance in the world, but you have to admit it worked out for the best for me and Grace.”

  “That’s not the behavior of a man I want as a son-in-law,” Henry told him. “We’re leaving as soon as the festivities are over, and we’re taking Emma with us.”

  Emma jumped up from the table. “You can’t do this! I’m not leaving Jackson.”