"You're right…we will always support her." He smiled.
"Maybe seven?" he turned her cheek so he could kiss her once more.
"Maybe." she moaned when his lips did most of the talking.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
At the wedding, half the town turned out to support them. Clay and Amy were shocked. Juan had a side of beef going and Becca cooked a ham. All the ladies from town brought food.
Beatrice wasn't up to standing around, so they brought out a chair for her sit on as she watched and talked to everyone.
No one said a word about Martin or the things that happened. It was a happy occasion.
Flowers decorated the beautiful archway that Juan and his men built. A huge cake was brought out.
The preacher from town would preside over the ceremony. Someone brought a piano out and the organist from the church played for the crowd.
Juan had found Chiquita and brought her there for the wedding. She was most happy to meet all his friends and new family.
Juan had proposed on the way out and she had accepted. They would be married at the Catholic Church the next week.
Becca had some news too. "We're going to have a baby." She cried and a roar of cheers went up.
Billy was passing out cigars and smiling.
When the ceremony began, Juan had been elected to give Amy away. He proudly marched her down the aisle between the seats.
Amy shook like a leaf in the wind as Clay took her arm and smiled into her eyes.
Exchanging vows, the preacher finally looked at them and gave them permission to kiss. "You can kiss the bride now."
He brought her against him gently, kissing her with a heated passion. The crowd roared with applause when they were married and they dashed toward the house to change their clothes.
Beatrice hugged them both and they were off to San Antonio for a honeymoon.
~*~
The trial wasn't long, but it was tense. Beatrice was able to travel so she went with them. Becca, Billy, Juan and Chiquita and all the men went too, for support.
Amy told them everything and Becca had her moment on the stand too. However, Beatrice seemed more effected by the trial than the others were. She broke into tears several times.
Still, the attorney for Martin did an excellent job of trying to tear all the testimony to shreds. He might have succeeded, but when Robert McPherson testified that he actually saw Martin kill Dell and George, and that he saw him leaving the jail just afterwards, that cinched the case against Martin.
Martin protested loudly, but the judge calmed him down several times and warned him if he had another outburst, he would be in contempt of court.
It wasn't a jury trial. And the judge listened intently to every witness. In his conclusion he shocked them all by saying, "Since you chose not to have a jury trial and you chose not to plead insanity, I have no recourse but to sentence you to hang by the neck until dead. May God have mercy on your soul."
Martin turned beet red. "Why are you hanging me? What did I do?"
The judge leaned toward him. "You killed a deputy, and a leading citizen of the town, and there was an eye witness to it sir. You are guilty and I cannot offer you immunity under the circumstances. Not to mention you shot your wife and kidnapped your own daughter, and an innocent victim in this was Miss Becca Reno. I've no doubt you deserve what you are getting. My sympathies to the families involved."
He would hang in three days.
Amy's mouth flew open; Beatrice gritted her teeth and tried not to show any emotion. Becca sat shocked. No one had expected the verdict.
When the court was dismissed, Beatrice was the first to get to her feet. "Well, it's over."
Amy didn't know how to react. She felt numbed by it all.
However, as they ate dinner in the hotel dining room Beatrice explained her lack of emotion. "The judge had no recourse. Had he only claimed insanity, he might have gotten away with only being sentences to an institution. As it were, he got what he deserved. There is no one to blame for this but Martin. And maybe his lawyer. I thought Lowell smarter than that. Nevertheless, be it as it may, Martin killed a deputy, any other man standing trial for that would get the same. It was a just verdict. Don't blame the judge, Amy, Becca. He was fair as he could be."
Clay nodded slowly.
That night as she lay in Clay's arms, Amy snuggled closer and held him there. "I love you Clay Reno…I hope you'll always love me."
"Always and forever. This side of forever I will always love you, and when we meet again in heaven, we can start all over again…" He smiled.
"I can't watch the hanging, Clay." She said lowly.
"It's alright, we don't have to. We can go on home. If anyone wants to stay for it, let them. He was your father for a lot of years. I don't expect you to watch it…"
He pulled her closer and kissed her crazy.
"You think mother will?"
"Yeah, I think she will. But I understand it. She has to put an end to all of this. She's suffered for a lot of years, silently. She deserves to see it end. Just don't hold it against her."
"I don't. Oh, Clay…I was so afraid she was dead. It was the cruelest thing he did to me when he told me he killed her. He was a very sick man, but even to the end, he couldn't admit it. You're right about pride. It has no real place in life. Make love to me…drown out all the bad and let me only see the good in life. Help me to forget the bad, and remember only the good…"
"Oh Amy…loving you is such a pleasure…" He whispered as he kissed her into submission. His love took away the bad and brought a happiness she would share with him forever.
For Clay Reno was all the good things in her life. She would have eight children, five boys and three girls. Becca and Billy had seven, four boys and three girls. Juan would marry Chiquita and at their age would not have any children, but they would help Beatrice raise the grandchildren and Juan's men would stay until they were either married or too old to move on in life.
This side of forever was heaven to Amy and Clay. As the years went by, the good outweighed the bad many times over.
The Double R was a happy ranch and stayed in the family for many generations.
The End
About the Author
Rita Hestand resides in a central Texas small town, where she's surrounded by her children and grandchildren. She spends her time with her family.
Born In Corpus Christi, Texas, Rita moved about the country as a child of a pipeliner and hair dresser. She went to school in many places, including Canada. This rich source of background fed her imagination. Although she loves Arizona and Oregon, Texas is home to Rita and always will be.
She has many books to her credit and hopes you'll explore them as they are as diversified as her bringing up was. She enjoys the variety of genres she writes in.
When asked "How do you know if you are a writer?" Rita will be the first to tell you that. "If you are a writer, you will have to write, whether you publish or not. You can choose to be a writer, but it doesn't automatically make you one. Writing is like a being a painter, an actor, or a singer, it's an inborn talent that never leaves you alone. If you are a writer, you'll have to write, no matter what anyone else says. It doesn't matter if you are the best, or the worst, if you can't put the pen down and leave it alone, if you write for money or not, it has to come out of you. Because that was what you were born to do. That's how you truly know you are a writer. Never let anyone discourage you. Never give up!"
Rita's Other Books
Series
The Travers Brothers (now in box sets too)
The Amory's (also in box sets)
The McKay's (in box sets as well)
Coming soon
The Armstrong's
The Connor's
Brides of the West
Red River Valley Brides Series
Western Serial Killer Series
The Dream Catcher Series
Some of her single titles are: In contemporary
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br /> Nick's Baby, Pretend Mom, Runaway Bride, Strictly Business, Suspicions of the Heart, Wandering Heart,
Some singles in historical:
Always Remember
Jodi's Journey
Thanks for reading this novel, hope you enjoyed it.
This Side of Forever (Book Five of the Brides of the West Series) Page 20