Yet how she could turn away from what she’d found with Wade? After last night, she couldn’t imagine ever letting another man touch her. The thought alone made her shudder. She only wanted Wade.
She crossed the dusty yard and tucked back the hair that the wind kept tossing into her face. She was getting too far ahead of herself. It wasn’t as though Wade had professed his love and proposed. In truth, Jillian had no idea what he was he thinking or feeling as he’d simply kissed her goodnight and slipped out the door.
On awakening this morning, she’d decided to go see Silver. Jillian knew the woman didn’t go to church, as she’d never seen her there, and she herself wasn’t up to seeing Wade and his family just yet. Especially at church. Not until she settled a few things, if only in her mind.
Hopefully talking things over with Silver would help. Of course that would mean telling her about last night. Jillian’s face warmed. Well, perhaps she wouldn’t tell Silver everything.
First things first, however, she had chores to do. Jillian walked through the barn door she’d left open last night. Hopefully by the time she got her work done and washed up she’d have a few things settled in her mind.
She sniffed, but most of the stench from last night’s manure was gone. Mostly all she smelled was what usually greeted her in the morning. Jillian stepped into Whiskers’ stall. He didn’t thump. He always thumped when she came in.
“Oh, Whiskers,” she whispered when she saw his still form lying in the cage.
She’d no idea how old he was but he was always active and alert, always eager to get to his food once she closed the cage. Certainly she wouldn’t have expected him to die anytime soon.
Sadness swept over her. She’d so hoped to earn his trust, to get him to stop thumping his foot when she came near. Now she’d never get the chance. It might not have been more than a few weeks since she’d taken over his care, but she’d come to love his ever-twitching nose and his cautious little eyes.
It wasn’t possible to be a veterinarian and not love animals and she considered Whiskers worthy of the tears that hovered in her eyes. Grabbing the shovel from the tack room, Jillian absently patted the other animals that had edged over their stalls for a morning greeting.
“I’ll get your breakfasts soon,” she said and went outside to find the perfect place to bury Whiskers.
She chose a spot at the edge of the trees next to a bright pink rose bush and dug deep enough that other animals wouldn’t smell what was there and unearth it. Her heart was heavy when she opened the cage and lifted him out.
She knew immediately Whiskers hadn’t died a natural death. His head lolled unnaturally. His neck had been broken. Feeling sick, she laid him back into his cage.
Spilled feed, spread manure, and a torn dress were simple things. Annoyances, mean pranks. But Steven had crossed the line this time and she was done keeping these incidents to herself.
It was time to get the sheriff involved.
*
Without being physically sick, there was no way to talk his way out of going to church without rousing his mother’s suspicions. But after last night, the last thing he wanted was to go to town. He wasn’t worried about running into Steven. Shane likely still had Garvey locked up but Jillian would be there and he wasn’t ready to face her. Had no idea what he’d say to her when he did.
He scraped a hand over his freshly-shaven face and let out a deep breath. On second thought, maybe it was a good thing he was going to church. He could pray for wisdom, a solution to his conflicting emotions.
Because he sure as heck didn’t know what the hell to do next. All he knew was last night had been so damn perfect and yet it didn’t change what Jillian did, who she was.
“Papa, will Mr. Garvey be at church?”
Wade was driving the wagon, his daughter bouncing along between him and his mother while James rode alongside on his gelding. Scott, the lucky bastard, was never expected to go. Since he’d first come to work at the Triple P, Scott made it clear he didn’t go to church and Eileen had never had pushed him. Because Scott wasn’t her son. She had no such reservations about pushing Wade.
“I’m not sure. That depends on Shane.”
“Does your hand still hurt?”
“A little,” he admitted.
“Will I be able to play with Jacob after church?”
“Not for long, I have a lot of work to do today.”
“I wonder why Mr. Garvey is so mean. Mrs. Garvey isn’t, she’s always real nice to me.”
“Annabelle.” His mother warned. “If you can’t say anything nice…”
“I know.” Annabelle huffed and crossed her arms. “But you grown-ups do it all the time. I hear you.”
From Wade’s right, James chuckled then tried to hide it behind a cough. It wasn’t even ten and Wade had a headache. Lack of sleep could only be blamed for a part of it. Since breakfast, his daughter hadn’t stopped talking, asking questions about last night. She wanted to know everything that had happened after she’d gone to bed. Since it was the first time she’d ever seen him hit anybody, it wasn’t unusual for her to be curious. Still he longed for one single moment where he could think in silence.
“Do you think Miss Matthews will be there?” Annabelle turned wide eyes on her father. “Will you get into another fight?”
“No, he won’t,” his mother replied with a pointed look at her son.
Annabelle looked almost disappointed at the news.
More wagons than usual filled the grassy area around the church. The gossipers were out in full force.
“Great, just great,” Wade murmured as he set the brake, jumped down, and lifted Annabelle out.
On the other side, James helped his ma.
“Uncle Shane!”
Annabelle ran to Shane, threw her arms around his waist.
“Hey, Button,” he said, using the name they’d all adopted for her.
“Is Mr. Garvey still in jail?”
“Annabelle!” Wade reprimanded at the same as his mother.
“I’ll get us a seat inside,” his mother said, taking Annabelle’s hand. She smiled at Shane, patted his arm. “Good morning.”
He tipped his hat. “Morning, Mrs. Parker.”
“Do you need me?” James asked, looking from Wade to Shane.
“Nah, just need a minute of Wade’s time.”
James nodded. “Then I’ll see you later.”
They waited until James was inside. The doors to the little church were open, letting in the breeze, but they were far enough away that their voices wouldn’t be heard. Nothing else moved around them but the grass bending in the wind.
“You were waiting for me?”
“Just thought I’d let you know that I’ll keep Garvey until church service is over. He’s not happy about it but I figured it would be best.”
It would allow Wade to get away from town before Steven was released. He felt some of the strain on his shoulders ease.
“Thanks.”
“Any time.” He studied Wade for a moment. “Anything else I need to worry about? You look like you didn’t sleep.”
“Had a hard time settling down after last night.” Which was true, but it wasn’t due to his fisticuffs with Garvey.
“Don’t blame you, but at least you got to hit him. I didn’t have that satisfaction.”
Wade smiled. “Next time.”
“Speaking of that,” Shane said and his grey eyes got a little darker. “I don’t think it’s only Steven we need to worry about.”
“You’re talking about Justin and that bunch.”
“I think they’re harmless, for the most part, but I was watching them at the picnic and at the town meeting. They don’t look too happy about having Jillian here either. Luckily, everything happened so fast last night they didn’t have a chance to get involved.”
Wade remembered how they’d glared at him as they’d left, which was right after Shane had hauled Steven away.
“I’ll keep my eye
s open but I’m hoping last night was an isolated event.”
“Yeah,” Shane said as he thumped Wade on the shoulder. “Let’s hope.”
*
Jillian breathed a sigh of relief when she rode Hope into town and saw all the wagons around the church. With any luck at all Shane wasn’t among those inside, although she had seen him in church before. But if he was, she knew he kept a room over the jail; she could always wait for him there. She tied Hope to Shane’s back stairway and, on the chance he was at his desk, slipped around front and went inside.
“Get out!” Steven seethed from the cell at the back.
Shane wasn’t anywhere to be seen.
Steven looked awful. Stubble darkened his face, his eyes were red and narrowed, his shirt hung out of his pants, and everything he wore was wrinkled. Even from where she stood she smelled last night’s whiskey on his breath. His hatred for her barreled across the floor and knocked her back a step.
“You don’t belong here, bitch, and I won’t rest until you’re run out!”
Jillian was glad the bars were firmly between them. His loathing was thick and black as smoke and it curled around her neck, making it hard to breathe. Well, he might yet succeed in running her out, but for the moment she was still there.
Swallowing her fear, knowing there wasn’t anything she could do about her racing heart or her damp hands, Jillian moved closer to the cell. His eyes went cold. His nostrils flared. Jillian ignored the rancid breath that flooded from his mouth.
“Get out of here.” He snarled.
“Stay away from me.” Jillian warned. “If you so much as think about hurting another of my animals, I’ll shoot you.”
“What the hell are you blathering about?”
“I’m not scared of you, Steven.”
He pounced on the bars and roared.
Jillian screamed and jumped back.
Steven laughed. “Looks like you’re plenty scared to me.”
Shane burst through the door. “What the hell is going on?”
“Your friend’s whore stopped by for a little visit.”
Shane glowered. “Apologize right now or you can spend another night in here.”
“Hell, no, I won’t apologize. I was minding my own damn business until she came in.”
Shane shrugged. “Suit yourself. Don’t matter one way or the other to me.” His eyes were still hard when he met Jillian’s. “Let’s go outside.”
“Where are you goin’? Let me out!” Steven yelled.
“I don’t remember hearing any apology,” Shane answered as he steered Jillian toward the door.
“I goddamn apologize!” Steven cursed.
Shane opened the door, looked back at Garvey. “I’ll consider it,” he said then shut the door on Garvey’s cussing.
“Why would you do that?” Shane asked the moment they were on the boardwalk. “You had to know that wasn’t going to help anything,” he said gesturing to the jail.
“I needed to talk to you; it’s important. I didn’t think Steven would still be here.”
Shane let out a breath. “Well, you found me. What was so all fired important?”
“If you’re angry about last night I didn’t mean—”
He held up his hand. “I’m not stupid, Jillian. I know last night wasn’t your fault and I don’t hold you accountable. Hell, Steven’s had it coming for a while. You’re not the first woman he’s disrespected.”
“You’re talking about Silver.”
He nodded, looked down the street toward the saloon. “Yeah.” He pulled his gaze back. “Anyhow, as I said, he’s had it coming. Doesn’t mean I have to be happy about the fallout. There was a steady stream of folks come by this morning who were more than happy to tell me what a bad decision I made locking up Garvey.” Shane regarded her closely. “You were the last person I expected to see in my jailhouse this morning.”
“I had better things to do myself, but my plans changed when I went into my barn.” There wasn’t anybody about but she didn’t want to get into details on the boardwalk. “Can we go somewhere more private to talk?”
“There’s my room upstairs but, truthfully, Jillian, that’s not going to help either of our reputations about now. How about Silver’s? Saloon’s not open so we’d have privacy there.”
Jillian nodded. He was right; it was a better solution than upstairs. “I’ll get Hope.”
He waited for her and they walked the street together, Hope clomping along behind them. Silver let them in through the back door.
“You’re in luck. Had the saloon been open last night, I would still be asleep, but as it happens I was in bed earlier than usual,” she said with a smile. “So you two can talk all you want, I’ll go upstairs and give you some privacy.”
“Silver, wait.” Jillian grabbed her friend’s arm before she could leave. “I was planning on telling you anyhow, this will save me the trouble of repeating myself.”
“All right. We’ll just sit here then, if that’s to everyone’s liking.”
They sat around the table, tension high in the air as both Shane and Silver waited for Jillian.
She started from the beginning. She told them about the saddle, the spilled feed, the manure, the shredded dress, and the rider she heard riding away.
“That’s why you were late coming to the dance.” Silver surmised.
“I wish you’d have looked, Jillian. Then it would be easy. Now, it could be any one of Steven’s friends.”
“I’m sorry. I was so upset about the dress and I felt so violated…” She sighed. “Anyhow, it didn’t seem that important at the time. Until then all they’d done was scare me, wasted some feed, and ruined a dress.”
Shane didn’t look happy. “What do you mean, ‘until then’?”
With sorrow in her heart, Jillian told them about Whiskers.
“Why didn’t you come to me before this?” Shane asked.
“And say what? That my saddle was moved? That some feed was spilled in my barn? I think you have more important things to deal with than that. Besides, it seemed innocent enough until…”
“You saw the dress,” Silver finished.
“That felt personal.” Jillian clasped her hands on the table. “I suppose I should have heeded the warning and not gone to the dance but”—she looked pointedly at Shane—“I haven’t done anything wrong and I wasn’t going to be scared into staying home.”
“I’ll talk to Steven.”
“What makes you think he’ll give you the truth?” Silver asked.
“Because I hold the keys to his cell.”
Jillian twisted her fingers together. “But he’s the only one in jail. The others won’t have the same reason to cooperate.”
“I know.”
“It could have been Hope,” Jillian whispered feeling sick at the thought. “He could have killed Hope instead of Whiskers.” Not that she didn’t love the rabbit, but she relied on Hope for more than just companionship. Silence filled the room. Jillian felt Shane’s stare and met it. “Is there anything I can do?”
“Yeah,” he answered soberly, “until we know for sure who did this, keep your gun handy.”
*
Shane waited for church to let out and everyone to head home for lunch before he grabbed his chair and plunked it in front of Steven’s cell. The man had a head full of resentment but his eyes latched onto the key ring that dangled from Shane’s fingers.
“Before I let you out, Garvey, I have a few questions for you.”
“Who says I have to answer them?”
Shane merely shrugged, swung the keys from side to side.
“Fine.” Garvey relented after a few heated minutes of staring. “What do you want to know?”
“Ever been to Jillian Matthews’ property?”
The flicker in Steven’s blackened eye gave him away.
“When?” Shane demanded.
“About a week or so ago,” Steven admitted. “I didn’t hurt nothing, just dumped some feed bags.
”
“It wasn’t ‘just’. You were sending her a message.”
Garvey wet his chapped, split bottom lip. “I was just”—he swallowed at Shane’s scowl, started again—“I was trying to scare her enough that she’d reconsider settling in Marietta.”
“It must have really burned your ass when she showed up at the dance.”
“She should have stayed the hell at home. If she hadn’t gone, I wouldn’t be in this stupid cell.” Steven contended.
“Wrong. If you’d kept your damn mouth shut you wouldn’t be in this cell.”
Beneath the yellowing of his bruises Steven’s jaw clenched. Shane simply raised a brow. Go ahead; give me a reason to keep you in here another night.
“Who did you get to go to her place last night?”
“Last night? How the hell do I know what happened last night? I was here!”
“You don’t know what happened at Jillian’s after the dance? You didn’t arrange to have someone go there, go into her barn?”
“When would I have had the time? When I was rolling around in the dirt with Wade or when I was being tied and dragged back here?”
Well, he had a point. “You have friends, Steven. Friends who agree with you that Jillian shouldn’t be here. Do you have any idea which one of them is capable of killing one of Jillian’s animals?”
Steven looked legitimately shocked. “Someone killed her animal?”
“Yeah.” Shane searched Garvey’s face.
Considering how much the man disliked Jillian, he appeared honestly taken aback by the news. And more than a little afraid that this might keep him in jail for a while yet.
“Look, I don’t like her, I’ve never made any bones about that, but whatever went on last night, I wasn’t a part of it. I’m not a killer.”
“Funny. Jillian tells me you were more than willing to let your boy’s dog die.”
“I didn’t want to pay her. Besides, it was just a dog.” He shrugged.
“Well, maybe to you it was ‘just a rabbit’.”
Steven shook his head as though he hadn’t heard properly. “Someone killed her rabbit and you’re interrogating me for that? Shit, we eat the damn things, what’s the big deal about a rabbit?”
Shane crossed his arms over his chest.
A Rancher’s Surrender Page 18