“Send me a message or come see me if you remember anything else, all right?” Sheriff Ross asked.
“Right,” Steve said stiffly.
The sheriff walked past him, and headed for the churchyard. People had moved about in order to chat more, but it looked like not one person had left. Everyone wanted to hear about what was happening.
“Meeting is over,” Sheriff Ross said, waving his arm around. “Thank you, everyone, for coming. I’ll be at the saloon for the next couple hours if you need to speak with me.”
Whispers floated across the yard, and the sheriff went to speak with Daniel Zimmerman.
“Steve.”
Bonnie was at his elbow, having snuck up on him without him noticing.
“It’s all right.” He squeezed her shoulder.
“What did the sheriff say?” she whispered.
Steve looked around, finding more than a few curious faces turned his way. “Let’s go into the hotel.”
Wakefield stood on the hotel’s porch, his arms crossed. Seeing them coming, he opened the front door right away and ushered them in.
“What happened?” Wakefield asked as the door swung shut, sealing the three of them in the foyer.
“He said it doesn’t look good,” Steve said, “me having that run-in with Hawkins.”
“What?” Bonnie cried. “He doesn’t think you killed Mr. Hawkins, does he?”
Steve started to say no but hesitated. Maybe Sheriff Ross really did consider him a suspect and was just hesitant to say so.
“He told me not to leave town,” Steve settled with saying instead.
Wakefield exhaled harshly.
“For how long?” Bonnie asked. She let out a nervous giggle. “For the rest of your life?”
“A few weeks, he said. Until he sorts this all out.”
“Fat chance there,” Wakefield spat. “What’s there to sort out? Hawkins is dead. No one misses him. End of story.”
“I think he wants to show people he’s doing something,” Steve said. “Especially if whoever killed Hawkins plans on…” He glanced at Bonnie, not wanting to say the rest.
“Killing again,” she said softly, for him.
Steve’s chest ached. Bonnie deserved better than these days filled with fear.
Wakefield’s nostrils flared. “Nothing is going to happen to you. You’re an innocent man.”
“Certainly,” Bonnie said.
Steve nodded in agreement, but the heaviness in his gut remained. A glance out the window told him almost everyone had left the churchyard.
“We should get home,” he told Bonnie.
Lips pressed tight, she slipped her arm through his. On the way out the door, they passed Thea and Aria.
“Have a good evening,” Thea told them. “Let me know if you…” Her kind gaze swept over to Steve before going back to Bonnie. “Need anything.”
“We are good,” Bonnie answered. “Thank you very much.”
The walk through town was quiet, but as soon as they turned onto the trail leading to the cabin, Bonnie couldn’t contain her anger.
“It is so preposterous!” she cried, drawing her arm from Steve’s and covering her face in her hands.
Steve wanted to shout too, but seeing Bonnie in such a state reminded him that he needed to remain calm.
“Everything is fine,” Steve said, reaching out for her. “You just said so yourself.”
Bonnie’s bottom lip jutted out. “I was attempting to be strong, Steve. To be truthful, though, I am… afraid.”
Tears entered her eyes, and Steve felt as if his heart was breaking in two.
“Listen here,” Steve said. “The sheriff is only being cautious. Nothing and no one is going to tear us apart.”
“How do you know that?” Bonnie asked, and the look in her eyes begged for him to be truthful with her.
“Because what we have, Bonnie…” Steve swallowed, emotions he’d never experienced rushing through him. “It’s something special. It doesn’t happen every day. Do you believe that?”
“Yes,” Bonnie whispered. “I really do.” She took Steve’s hand and held on tight to it. “What we have, Steve, it’s more than I had ever hoped for. More than I knew existed.”
“And you know I love you, right?”
Tears fell down Bonnie’s cheeks, but she smiled through them. “Yes.”
“There’s your guarantee right there.”
Bonnie’s lashed fluttered. “Steve, about our wedding…”
He sucked in a painful breath.
“We should wait,” she said. “Should we not? Until everything is calm once more.”
“Is that what you want?”
She hesitated. “Not really, but I believe it will be for the best.”
Steve cupped the back of her neck. “Then we’re of the same mind. I don’t want the memories of our union to be tainted by such unpleasantness.”
Bonnie nodded. “We will wait.”
“It won’t be easy.”
Bonnie smiled. “No, it will not. It is for the best, though.”
Steve dropped his hand from her neck and wrapped his fingers around hers. Together, they continued for home.
19
19. Bonnie
Chapter nineteen
As soon as Steve left for the mine the next day, Bonnie pulled out her pencil, sharpened it, and wrote him a note.
I will be back before nightfall. Have gone on a little outing with Mrs. Briggs.
The first part was the truth; the second part, not so much. If Bonnie was swift, she would be able to make it to Shallow Springs and back before Steve arrived home from the mine. Just in case she did not, though, the note was there for him.
Making haste, she rushed to the Briggs’ cabin. She would not be going to Shallow Springs with Thea like she said in the note, but she hoped her friend would be able to help her get there.
“Do you have a horse I can use?” Bonnie asked the second Thea opened the door.
Thea’s mouth and eyes went wide. “I… yes. What is the matter?”
“Nothing. I simply must go to Shallow Springs to speak with Sheriff Ross.”
Thea’s eyes went even wider. “Did something happen? Did you discover anything about the murder?”
“No. I simply need to speak with him. He must drop these accusations against Steve.”
“They are not exactly accusations, Bonnie,” Thea said. Behind her, Aria stacked blocks on the floor. She added a fourth block, and the tower came tumbling down.
“He told Steve not to leave town,” Bonnie said. “How is that fair?”
Thea huffed. “True.” She eyed Bonnie. “Do you really think you can change his mind? He is not a man who is easily swayed.”
“So I have noticed,” Bonnie said grimly. “But, I have to do something!”
“I do understand that you need to try, though. You may borrow a horse.”
“Thank you!” Bonnie cried, throwing her arms around Thea and giving her a big hug.
“What do you plan on saying to him?”
“I am not quite sure. I hope to formulate that on my way there.”
“Let’s get you going, then, so you can be back before dark.”
Thea filled a canteen with water and wrapped some biscuits up, then led Bonnie to the stable behind the house. It was a new one, judging by the freshness of the boards, and it housed two brown horses.
“I would go with you if I were able,” Thea said as she saddled one of the horses. “But the trip is too much for Aria.”
“Understood. And I do appreciate everything, Thea. More than I can say.”
“I know you do.” Thea handed Bonnie the biscuits and water canteen. “Now go. And please be safe.”
“I will,” Bonnie promised, pulling herself into the saddle.
She’d ridden on and off throughout her childhood, and though it had been months since she’d been on a saddle, she found riding to still be a natural thing. As she rode through Whiteridge and down the mountain,
she searched kept watch all around, constantly on guard.
Riding all the way to Shallow Springs on her own was a dangerous undertaking. In addition to criminals hiding in the mountains, there could be a whole slew of other dangers. What sort of animals might live nearby? Wolves? Mountain lions?
Steve would be very displeased were he to discover her little journey, but Bonnie could not simply sit around and do nothing. Steve’s reputation was being tarnished. Bonnie saw the way people had looked at him the day before. She heard the things they whispered.
People thought him capable of killing Mr. Hawkins. Sheriff Ross’ decree that Steve not leave town made it appear all the worse. What if they never found Mr. Hawkins’ killer?
Even if Steve was never formally accused, he would carry around the stigma of the crime for the rest of his life. People would always associate him with it. Some people would likely come to believe he truly was the killer.
Bonnie could not have that. Sheriff Ross needed to return to Shallow Springs and formally clear Steve of any and all accusations.
The wind blew harsher down in the valley, cutting right through Bonnie’s shawl. Though she had never been to Shallow Springs, the way was easily marked by the split in the road. To the right was Pathways, the town where she had arrived by train. To the left, Shallow Springs.
The sun was only barely past its midway point as Bonnie slowed the horse to a walk and entered the sleepy town. She looked around, taking in the blacksmith shop, bakery, and rows of houses. Shallow Springs was certainly larger than Whiteridge, but it seemed to contain the same air of ease and slow movement.
“Excuse me,” Bonnie said to a passing man. “Can you tell me where I might find Sheriff Ross?”
“Right there,” the man answered, pointing down the street.
Bonnie caught sight of the small sign in front of the sheriff’s station. “Ah. Thank you.”
Dismounting, she tied the horse up to the hitching post and checked to make sure there was fresh water in the trough before knocking on the front door. Bonnie squared her shoulders and lifted her chin. She was shaking on the inside, but she could not let that show.
The door opened, and, as luck had it, Sheriff Ross held onto its handle.
“Good afternoon,” he said, “Miss Potter.”
Bonnie was momentarily stunned. She’d expected him to remember she was Steve’s fiancée, but she had not expected him to remember her name.
“Good, um, good afternoon, Sheriff Ross. Do you have a minute?”
He glanced briefly over her shoulder, though what for, she did not know.
“You rode into town only to speak with me?” he asked.
“Yes.”
Sheriff Ross nodded and opened the door wider. “Have a seat, please. Tea? Water? I can have my wife make you something if you’re hungry. My house is just down the street.”
“No, thank you. Water is fine.”
Bonnie took a seat in one of the chairs across from his desk, and he poured her a glass of water from a pitcher. Bonnie gratefully took the glass and gulped down half of its contents right away.
Sheriff Ross took the seat behind his desk, and all the courage Bonnie had worked up on her ride down the mountain vanished. Sheriff Ross was a lawman who surely had years of experience. What was her emotional opinion against his professional one?
As if reading her hesitation, the sheriff leaned back in his chair and looked at her with intrigue. “Whenever you’re ready, Miss Potter, I’m all ears.”
Bonnie set the glass down on the edge of the desk and then because her hands needed something to do, she rearranged her skirts. “I doubt you will like what I have to say very much.”
“Ah.” Sheriff Ross nodded. “Right then. I’m listening, anyhow.”
Bonnie took a deep breath. Getting right to it would be best. Maybe then she wouldn’t lose all her nerve.
“Is my fiancée really the only suspect you have? Mr. Hawkins was not a popular man in Whiteridge, as I know you are aware of. Surely, there are others. Ones who are more liable to be aggressive.”
Sheriff Ross’ chest rose with a slow inhale. “I’m sorry, Miss Potter, but no, there aren’t any other suspects at this time. Your fiancée was the only one spotted at the scene of the crime that evening.”
“Spotted? Who spotted him? Was there not a jamboree happening inside of the hotel? Who would have been outside to spot him?”
Sheriff Ross held up his hand. “I apologize. I stand corrected: no one was spotted in that yard. But Steve did find the body.”
“And a killer would pretend to do that?” Bonnie argued.
“It’s not unheard of.”
Bonnie did not know what to say to that. She had only been in the sheriff’s office for a few minutes, and she already felt defeated.
“I am worried about his reputation,” she said quietly. “And about what this accusation will do to him.”
“I get that. I really do. Can you understand that I’m just doing my job, though? It would be a bad idea for me to ignore such a blatant suspect.”
Bonnie mulled that over. She hated to agree with the statement, but it was true: Sheriff Ross was only doing his best to enforce justice.
“Maybe something will happen,” Sheriff Ross said. “A witness will come forward, or someone will crack under guilt and confess.”
“And if not?”
He paused. “I don’t have the means to outright accuse Steven.”
Was his answer supposed to make her feel better?
“Miss Potter…” Sheriff Ross leaned forward and set his arms on the table. “Please be careful, all right? Not only riding back today, but in general. The West is a rough place.”
Bonnie eyed him suspiciously. “I feel you are speaking of something specific, sheriff.”
He sighed. “I know you arrived here recently. Just… be mindful of who you trust. Not everyone is who they seem.”
“Are you speaking of Steven?” Bonnie asked, her voice shaking with anger.
Sheriff Ross raised his eyebrows and gave her a hard look. “I’m speaking about everyone out there. Take care of yourself. Please.”
Bonnie did not even have time to think of an answer, for someone knocked on the door.
“Thank you for your time,” Bonnie said, moving with stiff limbs.
Sheriff Ross nodded and opened the door.
“Someone is taking my chickens!” the old woman standing there wailed. She had a clump of white feathers in her hand.
Bonnie squeezed past the woman and down the steps.
“It’s probably coyotes, Mrs. Fitz,” Sheriff Ross told the old woman.
Bonnie climbed into her saddle and headed out, riding at a trot through town. Her entire visit to Shallow Springs had been no more than fifteen minutes long, and now it was time to return home.
Be mindful of who you trust.
It was good advice, but Bonnie still bristled at it. Steve was her fiancée. The man who she would spend the rest of her life with.
She had not known him for long, but he had shown her his heart. He was not a killer.
How would she get others to see that?
20
20. Bonnie
Chapter twenty
The return trip to Whiteridge took longer than the journey down, but Bonnie still made it back before the mine let out. She knew because the sun still hung above the trees, and the miners worked most days until about an hour before sunset.
That meant she still had about thirty minutes to herself. It was more than enough time for what she had planned.
Riding the horse along the tree line behind town, Bonnie made her way to the hotel’s yard. The kitchen’s windows were open, and the clanking of dishes and the smell of cooking meat drifted outside.
Sliding off the saddle, Bonnie took the horse’s reins and led it to the hotel’s shed. The place of Mr. Hawkins’ death.
Nausea swelled in Bonnie, and she gulped against it. Simply thinking of what had happened there made
her ill.
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