Crockett’s expression darkened, and she stopped talking. Her face heated, and she wished she hadn’t said so much. What would he think of her now?
The sheriff let out a long sigh. “That about right, Ben?”
“Yes, sir.” Ben blinked hard and looked away.
The sheriff walked over and crouched beside the body. He spent half a minute or so looking closely. Jane guessed he was eyeing the bruises. Houston came back from the corral and stood by Bowie, waiting in silence.
At last the sheriff stood. “So, Boyd had been drinking?”
“I don’t know about this morning,” Jane said. “He had a snootful Saturday, when we had the house-raising. Like Ben said, some of the men brought bottles. I’m afraid Pa got some off them, because Ben and I went to church yesterday, and when we came home, he was curled up in the barn with an empty.”
“I found a couple more out back,” Ben said. “We thought he was sleeping it off this morning when we got talking. But I guess he woke up and heard us. He came out here…”
“He came out here at the worst possible time,” Jane said fiercely. “We were discussing with Crockett how that money could have gotten in the cave, and whether Pa might have—” She broke off and shook her head. “Best you talk to Ranger Hart about that, I guess.”
“I’ll do that.” The sheriff looked at Crockett, then at Houston. “I don’t think you boys need to worry much. I’ll let it be known it was accidental. In fact, we might be able to keep folks from knowing it was a fight. He appears to have hit his head when he fell back, and that’s what my report will say.”
“Thank you, Sheriff,” Crockett said sincerely.
Jane swallowed hard and reached for Ben’s hand.
“Now, have you got a wagon?” The sheriff looked around.
“That one’s ours,” Houston said quickly. “We brought some shingles this morning.”
“Where do you want him taken, Sheriff?” Crockett asked.
“Giles Brown can make you a coffin. I’ll tell him to expect you. All right, Miss Jane?”
He looked toward her, and she nodded. Mr. Brown did carpentry work for people, including coffins when needed.
Houston walked over to stand in front of her. “Is there anything else we can do? Would you like me to ask Reverend Longley to do a service for Boyd?”
Jane nearly choked. Pa hadn’t been in the church as long as she could remember.
“Pa wouldn’t like that,” Ben said.
“Maybe at the cemetery,” Jane ventured, looking sidelong at her brother. “For us, Ben. Not for Pa.”
Ben shrugged. “I guess.”
Bowie walked over to the corral and brought Watson’s horse to him.
“I can drive Boyd into town,” Houston said.
“Fine by me.” The sheriff mounted and fixed his gaze on Crockett. “If I need anything else, I’ll come by your father’s place—or will you be here?”
“If I’m not here helping with the roof, I’ll be home.”
Watson nodded and lifted his hand in farewell, then turned his horse and trotted off toward Hartville.
“While we load your pa, you might want to think about clothes for him,” Houston said softly to Jane. “What he’s got on is pretty dirty.”
She hadn’t thought about that. Of course they couldn’t bury him in the clothes he wore when he slept in the filthy barn. But he didn’t have much else.
“He’s got a shirt someone gave him up at the cave,” Ben said. “I’ll fetch it.”
“I’ve got some extra pants in my room,” Crockett said.
Houston nodded. “I’ll stop by the house and get ’em.”
They settled a few details, and then the Hart brothers loaded Pa’s body into the wagon bed and hitched up their horses. Ben returned with the extra shirt someone had given Pa and decided he’d better go into town with Houston and speak to Mr. Brown.
After they left, Jane didn’t know what to do or say to Crockett and Bowie. She wanted to collapse, but she didn’t even have a bed, or a chair to sit on. She walked slowly over to the bench in front of the barn and sank onto it.
Bowie said, “I’ll lay a few shingles.”
“If you think so,” Crockett said.
Jane looked up at him. “You don’t have to put good trousers on my pa for burying. Nobody will be able to see them, anyway.”
Crockett stood still for a moment, his lips twitching. At last he said. “It’s all right, Jane. I don’t mind. And it will be easier for Mr. Brown, when he lays out your pa.”
“He does all that?” She wasn’t quite sure what the process involved. Washing, surely. “He will, unless you want someone else to do it. My sisters-in-law might help you, and the pastor’s wife.”
Jane’s lower lip trembled. She didn’t want to touch Pa now. Didn’t want to wash his body or peel off his filthy clothes or dress him afterward in someone else’s clean, soft things that were better than anything Pa ever owned. But mostly, she just didn’t want to touch his clammy skin.
Tears coursed down her face.
Crockett walked over and knelt in the dirt before her. “Jane.”
She tried to blink back the tears, but there were too many.
He took off his bandanna and blotted her cheeks. “Janie, it’s all right.”
She shook her head. “Y–you must think we’re the worst scum in Texas.”
His mouth almost smiled, then went sober. “I would never think that.”
Next thing she knew, she was in his arms. He knelt there by the bench, holding her, and she sobbed into his shirtfront. Ma would have fits if she saw her behave this way, but Jane couldn’t stop crying.
“I’m s–sorry.”
“Don’t be,” Crockett said.
She cried some more and then slowly pulled away. Crockett stuck the bandanna in her hand, and she wiped her face. Over at the new house, Bowie was climbing the ladder.
“I didn’t mean to make a fuss in front of you. Or your brother, either.”
“Bowie won’t tell anyone.”
A little laugh jerked out of her.
Crockett smiled. “There, that’s better. I want to help you. I want to make this as easy as I can. I feel all kinds of guilty about what happened between your pa and me, and now I’ll do anything to make you not hate me for it.”
“I could never hate you, Crockett.”
“You sure?”
She nodded and sniffed. “I don’t blame you for Pa’s dying. It was his own fault. But I’ve been thinking … that you’d think less of Ben and me after you saw all you’ve seen here.”
“Not a bit.”
“Even if I tell you I’m not sorry for what happened?”
Crockett’s eyes narrowed. “You mean, that he’s dead?”
“Well not that especially. But I’m glad you tried to protect Ben. Pa might have hurt Ben real bad. He has before. Broke his arm once, when Ben was twelve.”
“I’m sorry.”
“I’m not exactly glad he’s dead, but I despaired of him ever changing his ways.” She looked up at him. “Your mother’s Bible. I’ve been reading it.”
“I’m glad.”
Jane couldn’t help a tiny smile. “She underlined things.”
“Yes, she did. I used to leaf through it and read the verses she thought were special.”
“That’s what I’ve been doing, and you know what I found?”
Crockett shook his head.
“It’s in Isaiah. It says, ‘When thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.’ I don’t think I’d ever read that verse before.” She shrugged. “Anyway, it jumped out at me, because of the fire we had.”
“And the fire didn’t hurt you,” he said softly. “Not any of you. Just your house and your stuff.” He took her hand. “I can’t imagine how hard it would be if our house burned, and everything in it. But I know it would be a hundred times worse if even one person was burned in that fire.”
Ja
ne sighed and looked toward the new house, where Bowie had started nailing down shingles. “Pa got out. He set that fire by accident, but he got out. And I’m glad Ben wasn’t here. He’d have tried to salvage some of Ma’s things. You’re right—it’s not worth it.”
“And you were smart enough not to try to do that.”
“I just hoped I could save the barn and the stock.” She gazed into his dark eyes. “Why did Pa survive the fire and die a week later?”
“I don’t know.”
“I thought to myself the night after the house burned that it might have been better if he hadn’t got out. And then I felt so guilty!”
“You don’t need to. Your pa has caused you and Ben a lot of grief.” He slid his arm around her shoulders. “I’m glad Ma’s Bible has been a comfort for you.”
“I’m sure it has a lot of things in it about forgiveness, too. Did you hear the sermon yesterday, when Reverend Longley talked about forgiving seventy times seven?”
“Yeah.”
“I guess that means I should forgive Pa for all the mean things he did to Ben and me.”
“I reckon so,” Crockett said. “Can you forgive me for what I did today?”
Her face softened. “There’s nothing to forgive.”
Chapter Nine
Crockett and Chisholm rode side by side into the Haymakers’ yard. The roof was now finished, and so was the stone wall around the well.
“The place looks nice,” Chisholm said. He hadn’t been back since the house-raising two weeks earlier.
“Thanks,” Crockett said. “Bowie and Houston helped Ben and me finish the roof, and Ben and I did the well this week.”
“Real nice.” Chisholm stopped his horse in front of the barn and swung down. “Think they’re inside?”
Crockett eyed the plume of smoke coming from the stovepipe. “The stove’s going.”
Together the brothers ambled to the door, and Crockett knocked briskly. Jane opened it a moment later.
“Hello. I thought I heard someone ride up.” She looked past Crockett to his brother and nodded at him. “Chisholm.”
“Miss Jane, I hope I have some good news for you.”
“I could use some,” she said. “Come on in. I’m expecting Ben any minute for his dinner, and I’ve got coffee hot if you’d like some.”
“That sounds good.” Crockett followed her in and sat down at the small pine table the Mortensons had donated. The kitchen smelled of gingerbread. Jane poked at a skillet of sliced ham and potatoes she had frying on top of the little box stove. Its heat wasn’t overpowering, now that the weather had cooled toward fall temperatures.
“I was telling Crockett the place looks good, Jane.” Chisholm sat down and stretched out his long legs. “Looks nice in here, too.”
She smiled as she brought over the coffeepot and two mugs. “Thanks. Ben and I have been trying to make things a little better. It’s amazing what prideful feelings a spanking new house stirs up.”
Chisholm laughed. “Well, I like it. Pretty curtains, even.” He nodded toward the muslin panels embroidered with a red cross-stitch border.
“Why, thank you. Emma and Annie helped me stitch those.” Jane poured out the coffee. “Hope you don’t mind, I’ll keep on with my work.”
“Go right ahead,” Crockett said. He didn’t mind watching her at all as she flitted about the new kitchen. She looked contented. Did he dare think even happy? The house belonged to her now, and she fit into it. He could see his place here, too, if she would let him take it. They could be a family.
“Thanks.” She turned back to the stove. “What brings you out, Ranger?”
Chisholm chuckled and winked at Crockett, as if to say that girl was sharp as a tack. “It’s the money. We’ve confirmed it came from the Treasury robbery.”
Jane turned around with a long-handled fork in her hand. “You don’t say.”
He nodded. “One of our Rangers took the sample to Austin and consulted with the Treasury people. They’ve told me to recover the rest of the money. My boss will see that it gets to the right place.”
“Good,” Jane said. “I’ll be glad when it’s gone.”
“There’s something else.”
“What?” Uneasiness crept into her eyes, but Chisholm smiled as he reached inside his vest.
“The State Treasury has had a reward sitting in an account for nine years. None of the stolen money was recovered up until now, and the specie probably never will be. The coins, that is. Everyone figures they were spent long ago. But these bills could be verified as loot from the robbery. And the State sent along a part of the reward money in that account for you—a hundred dollars.”
He held out a piece of paper. Jane took it and unfolded it.
“What is this?”
“It’s a bank draft,” Chisholm said. “You can take it in town anytime you want and cash it at the bank. It’s yours.”
Tears sprang into Jane’s eyes. “I didn’t do anything.”
Crockett reached over and touched her hand. “Yes you did. You found it, and you told the authorities. A lot of people would have just kept quiet and maybe tried to spend it.”
“You deserve it, Jane,” Chisholm said. “I’m glad to see you get it.”
The door opened, and Ben came in. He looked at the Hart men and paused.
“Crockett. What’s going on?”
Quickly, Chisholm explained to him about the reward. Ben took the slip of paper in his hands and stared at it. “A hundred dollars. Jane, we can get the feed we need, and maybe a heifer calf or two.”
“Sure you can,” Crockett said.
Jane’s tears spilled over and ran down her cheeks. “I didn’t expect anything like this. But I think we should keep it in the bank for you, Ben. Start a fund for you to go to college.”
“No, we can’t do that,” Ben said.
“Why not? It would be a start toward what you always wanted to do.” She set her lips in a firm line. Crockett smiled at the stubborn set of her jaw.
“But we need so many other things if we’re going to make this place pay.”
“That will take time,” Jane said.
“I know. But we can do it.” Ben laughed and swept her into a hug. “For once, I’m not the one bringing home the bacon. This is three months’ wages, Janie. More than that.”
She pulled away from him and swiped at her tears with the back of her hand. “Can we put half of it away for college?”
Ben frowned. “I don’t—”
“Maybe you two should think about it for a few days,” Crockett said. “Cash the draft and put half in the bank for now. Get what you need right away, and see where you are.”
“That sounds smart,” Ben said.
Jane glanced at Crockett. “Well, I guess.” To Chisholm, she said, “Thank you. If you’re sure it’s all right…”
“It’s more than all right,” Chisholm said. “It’s fitting. And now, I’d best get going. I’m supposed to be in town before noon. I’m heading out for a few days.”
“We brought the money down from the cave for you,” Jane said. She took the cover off a crock and took out the small metal box. She handed it to Chisholm.
“Thank you, that will save me some trouble,” he said.
Crockett stood and slapped his brother’s shoulder. “Take care.”
“I will. See you soon. Thanks for the coffee, Jane.” Chisholm went out the door.
“Do you want to go to the bank today?” Ben asked.
“All right. Wash up. Let’s eat dinner, and then we’ll go. Crockett, you’ll stay to eat with us, won’t you?”
“If you’ve got plenty.”
“I think we do. I’ll put a few eggs on to stretch it out.”
“Be right back.” Ben strode to the door and outside.
Jane sighed and went to the stove.
Crockett came to stand beside her. “Jane.” His mouth was dry, but now was the time. He needed to know if Jane would share his future. He couldn’t bea
r thinking about what he’d do if she said no. He didn’t care what his father said—if Jane turned him down, he couldn’t marry someone else in a hurry. Because Jane was everything to him now.
She glanced up at him, then at the pan of potatoes and ham she was stirring. “What?”
“I’ve been wanting to ask you something.”
“What? Because I wondered if you really think we ought to spend that money on supplies and young stock. I don’t know how much college costs, but—”
“This has nothing to do with the money.” Crockett nodded at the spatula she held. “Can you put that down?”
“I’ve got to cook eggs.”
“Forget the eggs.” He took the spatula from her hand and laid it on the table, then took both her hands in his, his pulse racing. He took a deep breath and looked into her eyes. “Jane, I want to marry you. Will you—will you be my wife?”
She stared up at him, no sound coming out for a moment. “You mean it?”
“Of course I do. These past few weeks, I’ve come to care about you, and—well, I’m pretty sure it’s love, Janie. I told you my pa wants all of us boys married, and I can’t think of anybody else I’d rather … Well, you’re it for me. Unless you say no.” He eyed her anxiously.
She swallowed hard. “I won’t say no.”
“So you’ll say yes?”
“Yes.”
Her breath rushed out of her as he pulled her into his arms.
Jane leaped away from Crockett when the door creaked open. Ben stood in the doorway grinning.
“Well, it’s about time.” He strode across the kitchen and stuck out his hand. Crockett grasped it heartily.
“Thanks, Ben. Jane just agreed to marry me.”
“Capital! When’s the wedding?”
Crockett laughed. “We haven’t discussed that yet. Soon, I hope.”
She felt a flush bloom in her cheeks, but Crockett only smiled at her.
“We’ll have to talk about it,” she said, fighting to stay calm. “Now, you fellows sit down and eat this food.” She quickly cracked eggs into the pan and brought the ham and potatoes to the table. They sat down, and she looked across the table at Ben. “Pa didn’t hold much with prayer, but I want to start again. Do you mind?”
Seven Brides for Seven Texans Romance Collection Page 39